Legends Of The Fourth of July - Coreline
by orionpax09
Summary: The Core Timeline is an amalgamation of chaos. The so-called real world has been overlapped with the realms of movies, comic books, anime, and more. Fanfictions have literally come to life. And in the city of Chicago in this Coreline, a young hero must fight to save it from destruction...as well as fight her own demons...
1. An Unlikely Hero, A Deadly Scheme

Disclaimer: I do not own Evangelion, any of the characters or concepts depicted here, or anything associated with them. I have written this story solely because I enjoy writing.

Legends Of The Fourth of July

Chapter 1: An Unlikely Hero, A Deadly Scheme

The Fourth of July had come to the United States of America in the strange amalgamation of worlds that was referred to as the Core Timeline, or simply Coreline. And in that world's city of Chicago, one of the many costumed heroes that had been brought there prepared for action.

As she looked on from a safe distance, she watched as the group of criminals she had been trailing for what felt like forever went about the work on one of the skyscraper rooftops. And as she did, she confirmed that the information she had gathered had proven to be true; the Joker R gang was at it again, and this time, they were working with some spectacularly unpleasant friends of theirs, the Golden Four.

The costumed heroine knew of these two teams of villains, if only by reputation and what she had scanned from their files. The Joker R gang was led by an analog of Ranma Saotome of the infamous Nerima Wrecking Crew, only this particular Ranma had apparently had an even more messed up childhood than most of his analogs. Rumor had it that his father, Genma Saotome, had decided to train him in something called the Clown Fist, the results of which were even more mind-warping than that of the infamous Cat Fist. Though not as cruel as most Joker amalgams, he was still deadly dangerous, mixing up the typical tricks of the Clown Prince of Crime with an exceptional skill and knowledge of martial arts.

Like most Joker variants, this Ranma had his own version of Harley Quinn, only his female sidekick was an analog of Shampoo from his home universe. As loopy and fanatically in love with her Joker as most Harleys but with her native Chinese Amazon training intact, she was no laughing matter.

While Shampoo wasn't Joker R's actual girlfriend, the Hikari Horaki present on the roof was. And unfortunately, she was also an amalgam of Bane, was a good deal taller than most Hikaris, was seriously buffed up, and had a variation of the power-amplifier that pumped an improved version of the drug Venom straight into her brain. While the experiences that had put her in this role weren't as bad as that of some Bane's, it was bad enough to do not nice things to her sanity. She was still as polite as most Hikaris, but that didn't stop her from breaking people in half.

And Hikari wasn't the only girl from a world of Evangelions in this crew, nor was she the only one with a kind of Venom. The newest member of the Joker R gang, having joined them after they had arrived in Coreline, was a variant of Asuka Langley-Sohryu, and she had bonded with part of one the Angels from her world. A part that had turned into a being of black sludge, a symbiote known as Venom, and had bonded with Asuka. The costumed girl didn't know much about her background, but she did know the kind of things that a symbiote such as that did to a person's mind was enough to make anyone dangerous.

As the superheroine looked on, the group's version of Rei Ayanami paused in her strolling to sniff the air, as is searching for prey. This wouldn't have surprised the costumed girl, because this Rei was an amalgam of Killer Croc, and was every bit as feral and deadly as her namesake. No one knew what had caused her to be this way. All there were was rumors that she was a prototype of Rei that the Gendo who had created her deemed a failure and tried to dispose of. Only for this Rei to wind up disposing of him instead...by literally eating him alive.

This Rei had no such inclination towards that Gendo's son, Shinji, and it was just as well, because the costumed girl suspected that eating an amalgamation of Clayface would have very nasty consequences. From what she had heard, this Shinji had had the misfortune of getting into an argument with his world's Ritsuko Akagi at a point when she was not only upset with his father, but either on the verge of losing her mind or having already lost it. The costumed girl didn't know what the doctor had done, but it had left Shinji with the typical powers of Clayface; extreme metamorphic abilities and superhuman strength. Allowing him to become virtually anything, and attack with overpowering force.

_Which bugs me, because there's no sign of him,_ the girl thought with a distinct frown. She had been scanning this building and the other adjacent ones for a while now, and she had completely failed to track down this Shinji. This, of course, meant he was concealing himself in the shape of someone or something else there, ready to strike any unwanted guests without warning. Which was an unpleasant prospect to say the least.

Frowning, the girl continued scanning the rooftop, focusing on the people she could find, such as Nao Yuuki. The costumed girl didn't have much information on Nao; all she knew was that she had lost her left eye at some point, and worse, had gained a Sinestro Corp power ring. Even now, she was hovering at one of the building corners, scanning for possible enemies.

While Nao was doing this, her boyfriend, Katsuhiko Jinnai. was busy elsewhere. Though Jinnai analogs typically hailed from worlds involving El-Hazard, this one had taken a much different path that had led to his becoming his world's Scarecrow. He was as conniving as most Jinnais, and worse, was an excellent schemer and strategist like some of the more intelligent variants. Combined with the Fear Gas he wielded, and he was a nightmare for just about anyone sane.

At the present, Jinnai was supervising several goons they had on hand as they loaded chemicals into some nearby rockets, alongside the current leader of the Golden Four, a variant of Goldie Musou, an infamous enemy of the Gunsmith Cats who delighted in brainwashing people with mind control drugs, even making a host of sex slaves of beautiful woman. This particular variant was all that and worse, being a telepath capable of mental communication, telekinetics, and naturally mind control. And in the event she was being confronted with someone who could withstand her mental attacks, she had built up her physical strength as well. A powerfully built Amazon, this Goldie was also known to carry a large variety of weapons in her coat.

_Gonna have to take her out pretty fast,_ the girl noted before turning her eyes towards another member of the Golden Four. _Her and Radinov..._

The costumed girl was fairly certain that the Natasha Radinov that was presently pacing about the roof impatiently, snarling and growling with ill-controlled rage, had once been very like other Radinovs, who had all been tough fighters even as normal humans. The human equivalent of a Terminator, for all practical intents and purposes. But this one had started taking gammaroids, a drug that temporarily endowed the taker with Hulk-like powers. Even worse, this Radinov had made the mistake of overdosing on them, and as a result, she was a Hulk all the time, something that had made her incredibly strong, even by Hulk standards, but basically destroyed her mind. She was incredibly angry, incredibly vicious, and when in a bad mood, needed to be kept on a short leash by Goldie's mental powers.

_That's two of the Golden Four...but the others..._ the costumed girl frowned unhappily, because like Clayface Shinji, there was no sign of Goldie's remaining compatriots. She didn't know how Goldie had gotten analogs of the Gunsmith Cats on her team, though mind control and brainwashing were pretty good guesses. All she knew was that her version of Irene 'Rally' Vincent had taken up the moniker of Bullseye, and she lived up to that name. A perfect shot with virtually anything that could be shot or thrown. And even worse, she was also a user of a variant of Venom. She didn't use enough to require a pump like Banes needed; just enough to give her extra muscle in hand-to-hand, and the ability to easily wield the heavier guns.

_Their Rally is probably on another building. A lookout, ready to gun down anybody who tries to mess with whatever they're up to,_ the girl decided with a frown. _She's deadliest at a distance. Unlike her partner..._

Like Radinov, their Minnie May Hopkins had wound up as a gamma mutant, though a more stable one. Though short for a Hulk, standing only at six and a half feet, "Crushette" Hopkins as she liked to be called was gleeful ball of homicidal insanity. She lived for killing, and if rumors about her taking a shine to the Joker Ranma were true, then she was even more insane than the costumed heroine really wanted to think about.

_She's probably somewhere close by. On standby as well, a reserve in case something goes wrong,_ the costumed girl reasoned. _Still...I don't have much time. If I'm right about this, I have just over fifteen minutes before they light those rockets...and Chicago goes straight to hell!_

* * *

"Aw, man, this is boring," Joker R complained even as he watched several disposable henchmen they had picked up working hard, even as the rest of his crew and his allies worked to put their scheme into action.

"What wrong, J-chan?" Harley Shampoo asked in broken English. "You no like fireworks?"

"No, fireworks are fine, Shampie. You know me; I simply _love_ things that go boom!" Joker R returned in a somewhat snippy manner. "It's _repeating_ myself that I hate!"

"Which is why this is perfect, Ranma," Goldie remarked from where she stood, eyeing the loading of chemicals into the rockets with the intensity of a predator about to make a kill. "Everybody knows how much you and other Jokers hate pulling the game joke twice in a row. Why do you think I asked you to pull that little gag last night?" Smiling dangerously, the blonde continued to eye the chemicals she had worked so long and hard to prepare for this night's festivities. "After that mess, everybody will think that you will and the others will be laying low. No one will see what's coming...before it's too late."

"Not that anybody would see it coming anyway," Jinnai remarked with the usual smugness of his kind. "I must say, Goldie this little scheme...it's _perfect,_ that's what it is! Absolute _perfection!"_ A malicious grin stretched across his face as he watched the goons continue to labor. "Before tomorrow morning, this entire city and everyone in it will be all ours! A veritable sea of oysters, waiting for us to come along and pluck them clean of every pearl they have!"

Jinnai punctuated this statement with the lunatic guffaw that was the trademark of every Jinnai analog. Only to quickly cease laughing when Radinov paused in her irate pacing and snarled menacingly at him. As the fear-monger recoiled, raising his arms before him in alarm, Goldie gave her a teammate a poisonously sweet look. "Settle down, Radinov," she instructed the gamma mutant, the way she spoke making it clear that she was also using her telepathic abilities to soothe Radinov. "I know how much you hate his laugh, but you can't kill him. He's an ally, and we need his little concoctions for our plan to work." The irate gamma mutant snarled, her massive musculature bulging beneath her clothes as her eyes sparked with emerald rage. "Don't worry; you'll have plenty of things to kill. I just need you to be patient for a little while longer."

A low, hateful growl escaped Radinov's lips before she finally muttered, "Al-right." Casting one final, menacing glare at Jinnai, the Russian Hulk renewed her pacing, bristling for any excuse to lash out.

As Jinnai recovered from his close call, he snorted and practiced looking indignant, while Joker R chuckled lowly. "Hey, don't let it get you down, Scarecrow. So she doesn't have a sense of humor! So what?!" the clown martial artist wondered. "Personally, I like a guy who can keep a positive attitude and enjoy himself in this line of work!" Then he gave Jinnai another look and asked, "Speaking of positive attitudes...how much longer will I have to maintain mine before the fun actually starts?"

Recovering some of his usual swagger, Jinnai checked his watch. "Hmm...the fireworks are scheduled to begin in less than five minutes." Then he gave Joker R another of his monstrous grins. "And once these beauties start lighting up the sky, they'll spread our combo platter of chemicals all over the city! The effects will be instantaneous!"

"And we've already seen what this stuff can do, J-chan," Hikari noted, her voice muffled slightly by her mask, though her eagerness was not at all disguised. "The entire city will be one big free-for-all in seconds!"

Joker R had indeed seen the effects of the chemical cocktail they were about to unleash, and the thought of it made him grin a true Joker's grin. "Well, in that case...maybe I _can _stand repeating myself. Just this once, of course."

"Of course," Goldie noted with a nod. "And once the party's over...the _real _fun begins...!"

* * *

Nao really hated being a lookout in situations like this.

She knew why she had gotten this duty, of course. She was a bearer of a power ring, one of the Sinestro Corps rings and thus one of the more stable and controllable powers of the emotional spectrum. She was capable of instilling great fear, and she had tremendous creativity when it came to her constructs. Even if the local police or one or two heroes showed up now, she was capable of defeating several of such forces, or at the very least, holding them off until the others came to assist.

That didn't make what she was doing any less tedious. Just looking around, seeing nothing, doing nothing. With nothing to indicate that anyone even knew or cared that they were there.

_Which is a good thing,_ Nao was forced to remind herself. _Pulling this thing off will make both ours and the Golden Four's careers! But if we blow it...Goldie will be screwed, and in all likelihood, so will we!_

Which meant that success was of paramount importance, and if none of the local costumed types or other do-gooders had taken notice of them, then so much the better.

But as Nao continued to hover just above the rooftop, she scowled, for no amount of logic made the tedium any easier to take.

_How much longer, anyway?_ Nao wondered with a scowl. _Even if I can't get in on the party we're kicking off, I want to be able to at least -!_

The Sinestro Corps member was cut off when she felt something grab her by the hand. An instant later, something clasped over her mouth and nose, completely obstructing them.

_What the hell?!_ Nao thought, letting out muted noises of shock as she struggled to break free of whatever held her. Acting on sheer instinct, she called forth the power of her ring, already mentally shaping the power of fear that she wielded...only to mentally gasp when nothing happened. No yellow energy appeared in front of her to dispatch her assailant. _But how is that - ?!_

Looking about wildly, Nao looked towards the hand where her ring hung about her finger...only to let out a muted cry of horror when she realized it was no longer there. Instead, it was hovering a short distance away, parts of it obscured as what could only be an invisible hand moved.

_Invisible or someone with a stealth suit!_ Nao thought bitterly as she continued to fight against her unseen assailant. But now that her attacker had gotten a hold of her ring, he or she or whatever was using both arms to hold her tight. And while the attacker didn't feel particularly big, he or she was more than strong enough to hold the now-powerless Nao as her struggles faded, her mind clouding over as her lungs burned from lack of oxygen. _But...why? Bullseye has a...stealth-cracker. Why...didn't she...warn...?_

This unfinished question was the last thing to go through Nao's mind before she collapsed utterly, sagging into her attacker's arms and into the lands of unconsciousness.

* * *

_So far, so good,_ the costumed girl thought as she gently set her subdued victim on the roof before slipping away, already slipping Nao's power ring into one of the pouches of her utility belt. _One of their heavy hitters are down, and their Bullseye hasn't picked up on me._

Then she frowned, and gingerly crept across the roof. _Better keep moving, though. Even if Bullseye hasn't noticed me yet, she'll definitely spot Nao the next time she looks that way!_ she thought urgently. _And while Nao might not have made much noise...it might have been enough to attract attention!_

* * *

As Goldie studied the rockets that were now in the final stages of preparation, a puzzled grunt sounded in the night air. "What is it, Rei?" Bane Hikari wondered, prompting Goldie to look in the crocodile woman's direction. She was presently looking about suspiciously, sniffing the air. "You smell something?"

"No," Rei promptly admitted with some of the guttural growl that all Croc variants had. "But I _did _hear something." Narrowing her slitted eyes, she glowered at the far end of the roof. "From over there."

"Well, well. Maybe we have company?" Joker R wondered, his voice carrying with it a dangerous spark of interest. "Asuka, Rei, do be good little girls and make any guests you might find feel quite unwelcome!"

With an ominous growl and a hiss of deadly hunger, the Killer Croc and Venom variants started off in the direction Rei had indicated. As they did so, Goldie furrowed her brows and opened her mind to one of her own teammates. _Rally dear, it looks like we might have a problem._

_What is it?_ Rally wondered.

_Nothing much. Rei says she heard something,_ Goldie returned. _What about you? Seen anything yet?_

_No. Nothing so...hold on,_ Rally cut herself off, her mental voice going from cool confidence to surprised confusion in the span of a second. _Nao's down! She's not moving! And her power ring is gone!_

"What?!" Goldie blurted aloud, surprise eroding her self-control. As her allies in general and Joker R in particular looked her way, she grimaced and announced, "Nao's down. Someone got to her and stole her ring!"

"Oh, dear!" Joker R got out, cupping his cheeks in concern that wasn't as much mockery as would be for other Jokers. "I hope they didn't take anything else!"

As Hikari proceeded to alert Rei and Asuka to what they had learned, Goldie returned her focus to one of her prized attack dogs. _How did this happen, my dear Rally?_ she wondered in a dangerous manner. _You _are _wearing stealth-crackers, aren't you?_

_Of _course _I am! _Rally quickly assured her. _I should be able to see anything, even if it's invisible or using stealth!_ A beat passed as the professional gunwoman mentally frowned and added, _At least...as long as it's moving..._

Goldie groaned inwardly at this point, knowing that it was valid. Powers and technology pertaining to stealth varied, both in terms of maintaining it and breaking it. And it was a point of pride for Goldie that she had managed to get the very beast stealth-crackers that money could buy. But even she had to admit that they could be fooled, assuming that the stealth field or invisibility power was good enough, and if the person implementing them knew enough to remain still when the stealth-crackers were pointed in his or her direction.

_But how is that possible? Whoever's here would have to know _exactly _when you're not looking at them to avoid being seen!_ Goldie demanded. _How could -?!_

"I've found Nao," Rei growled in announcement from somewhere outside Goldie's line of sight. "She's not waking up. And her ring is definitely missing."

Growling in his throat in consummate disgust, Jinnai grumbled, "I don't believe this! We have the perfect plan going, so of course some imbecilic moron bumbles into us and starts trying to ruin everything!"

"Then we don't let that happen. It's as simple as that," Goldie announced in a cold voice.

* * *

Asuka was so hungry. A hunger that became increasingly palpable as she skirted about the shadows, moving about the various crates she and the others had brought up there, as well as the various objects protruding from the rooftop. A hunger that was given physical manifestation by the long, slavering tongue stretching out from the huge, toothy mouth that her other gave her in this form.

_We haven't eaten in _so _loonnnng...!_ Asuka thought, slowly scanning her surroundings, listening for even the slightest footfall, the tiniest breath. Things that would lead her to the food she so craved.

For some time now, the symbiotic creature had been forced to make do with standard fare. Human foods, the kind of things that could be found in restaurants. But since she had been transformed, merged with her Venom, Asuka craved _real _meat. _Living _flesh. And as a result, virtually everyone around her looked very much like a banquet feast.

Making it that much harder for her to restrain her hunger, even if Asuka's feeding would endanger the group as a whole.

_I hope we find whoever attacked Nao first! _Asuka thought, caught between the impulse to shine that so many Asuka variants had, and the opportunity to sate her hunger. _Brains, heart, lungs, liver...so many delicacies! So many -!_

A faint, jabbing pain was felt in Asuka's right arm, and was immediately followed by the sensation of two arms wrapping about her body, with one of those arms covering her entire mouth. _What - you!_ Asuka and the symbiote hissed as one, realizing that their foolish foe had effectively shoved part of her own body into their waiting mouth. _You want to lose that arm so bad, you've _got _it!_

Without hesitation, Asuka chomped down as hard as she could on the arm, only for the white eyes of her symbiotic covering to expand in surprise when they failed to penetrate whatever was covering said arm. _Must be armor-plated! _she and her other realized, the symbiotic mass already rising up about her, instinctively wrapping about anything nearby. And with a cruel grin of satisfaction, the German watched as her other began coating the creature stupid enough to try attacking them. Already, arms and legs were revealed as they became enveloped in their black substance. _But armor always has cracks!_ she thought as her foe becoming increasingly coated in symbiote, revealing a roughly feminine figure._ We'll find them, we'll get through them and then to you, bitch! And then we'll...we'll..._

Even as she worked to overcome her prey, Asuka realized that something was wrong. Her mind was clouding over, her thoughts jumbled and confused. And even worse, a terrible lethargy was spreading throughout their combined body, both human and symbiote. _Wha...aw, _schisse_!_ they hissed furiously, recalling the pain in their arm, and realizing what had happened. _Must've...drugged us...! Getting...sleepy...!_

As one, Asuka and Venom tried to fight back, to purge whatever sedative had been used on them. But it was moving too fast through their combined systems. _Must've been...tailor-made...for us..._ the hybrid creature realized, groaning in hateful defeat as the symbiote sloughed off the person that had done this to them. _Dammit...Ranma, everyone...when you...catch this asshole...make sure you...save the bitch...for us...we want...to eat...her braaaains..._

* * *

_Two down, a lot more to go,_ the costumed girl thought as Venom collapsed in her arms. Realizing that Rally was already turning her stealth-crackers in her general direction, she quickly took cover behind a nearby crate, knowing that she would have to leave that position fast before the German's allies arrived. _But I don't think I can get much further with stealth. Not with Rally where she is, and all these creeps searching._

As she moved, keeping track of her surroundings and Bullseye's ever-present gaze, the costumed girl considered her options. She could take out the gunwoman that was presently trying to get her in her sights, but doing that would likely set off Goldie. Put her in a position where she felt she would have to launch what rockets she had now, lest her scheme fail entirely. And the remaining members of her enemy were either too powerful physically to take down in a stealthy manner, or too clustered together for her to be able to disable without someone else noticing.

_If only I could..._ she thought, fingering the device about her neck, only to scowl. _Dammit, no use crying about things I can't change! All I can do is take these bitches down! And I _will_!_ With that, she kept moving, already planning out her next attack. _Just like _he _would..._

* * *

"Ranma!" Rei cried out, her monstrous voice taking on a note of alarm now. "Venom's down as well!"

_"What?!"_ Joker R got out, his expression contorting with incredulous annoyance. "How the hell does somebody take down a Venom, much less an _Asuka, _without making so much as a peep?!"

"They used a sedative of some kind," Rei reported from her present position, rising up to growl unhappily. "A powerful one, by the smell of it. She's out for at least a day."

Her ire mounting over this latest failure in her allies and her plan alike, Goldie reached out with her mind once more. _Rally, Venom's down. Don't tell me you didn't see what happened._

_I saw _something_!_ Bullseye reported with a scowl. _Just after Venom fell, I caught a glimpse. A bit of movement, but then whoever did it got behind the crates before I could get a target!_

Hissing in disgust, Goldie muttered, "Two people down, all without anyone seeing it happen." Shaking her head irritably, "Clean, silent, and neat. Whoever we're dealing with is _good."_

At these words, Joker R's eyes widened ever so slightly, a strange expression on his face. "Clean...silent...neat...and good at sneaking up on people and beating them senseless...?" he asked, something akin to awe and joy in his voice as a monstrous grin split his face. "You don't suppose...there's a chance...we have a _Bat _in our belfry?!"

"J-chan!" Shampoo cried out in surprised delight even as Goldie groaned inwardly.

"Oh, is it possible? Have my antics, my attempts to spread mirth, whimsy, and carnage throughout the Windy City, _finally_ earned me the attention of my very own Bat?!" Joker R went on in a singsong fashion, fluttering his eyes in hopeful joy. "Have I found what _every _Joker wants; an eternal rival, an enemy to match wits and skills with for the rest of their lives or until one manages to kill the other?! Can it be?!"

As Joker R grinned the biggest grin Goldie had ever seen from him, with Harley Shampoo jumping about in eager hope, the mind-controlling mistress groaned in dismay. While Joker R and his gang had proven valuable allies to her, with the Golden Four's Minnie May being attracted to him and his gang often in need of chemicals Goldie routinely handled, he shared the same fixation every Joker seemed to have with those who wore the mantle of the Bat, and had at times been quite upset that he had yet to warrant his own personal nemesis.

Before Goldie could say anything, Jinnai put her annoyance into words. "Look, as much as I can appreciate the need to find and utterly annihilate one's great rival in life, does it have to be _now?!"_ the fear-mongering Scarecrow amalgam demanded. "We're less than _three minutes_ away from launch! And the last thing we need is a Bat or any other costumed idiot messing things up for us!"

As Radinov growled menacingly, Goldie nodded. "For once, you and Radinov are in complete agreement," she announced as she reached into her coat. "We can't afford any delays. And if this _is _a Bat or someone using a stealth suit, then I know just how to flush them out!"

Bringing forth the weapon in question, Goldie brandished what looked like a high-tech gun, drawing the attention of several of her allies. "Wait - is that a photonic scrambler?!" Jinnai wondered with a raised eyebrow. "But if you use that thing now -!"

"It'll register on the police scanners, as well as any tech-based heroes that might be around here!" Goldie admitted. "But we're too close to achieving our goals, and I am _not _going to have all the hard work and money I've sunk into this operation ruined because of one costumed cretin who can't keep their nose out of my business!"

"But you'll have to sweep _the entire roof _with that thing in order to make sure you hit the target!" Jinnai protested. "And if you fire it off for more than a few seconds, we'll have _every _costumed cretin in town coming right down our throats!"

"And by the time they get here, our unwanted guest will be dead and the rockets launched!" Goldie countered. "And when that happens, they'll be too busy to -!"

"Now, hold on for a moment, Goldie! Our Scarecrow has quite the point there!" Joker R broke in, much to Goldie's surprise. "The last thing this party needs is for a bunch of poopers to show up and screw everything up! Besides, I've got a better idea!" Starting at this, Goldie gave her clown compatriot a look, a look he responded to with a truly devious grin. "It takes a few seconds for a photonic scrambler to register as such on scanners, right? So as long as you can get our intruder with a quick shot, no one will notice, correct?"

As she continued to study the clownish Ranma, Goldie again reminded herself that Jokers and amalgams of Jokers may act like idiots on the outside, but they rarely were on the inside. "That's right."

"Then all we have to do is flush our uninvited guest out so you can give 'em a quick little zap that won't show up on anybody's radar! And I know just how to make that happen!" With that, Joker R looked out across the rooftop, cupped a hand to his mouth, and called out, "Oh, Shinji-kun! Do be a good boy...and _blow yourself up!"_

Even as Goldie's eyes expanded in surprise, the mind-manipulator wondering if she had actually heard what she thought she had, a garbled voice replied, "Got it, J-san!" Even as she tried to make sense of what Joker R had in mind, their version of Clayface appeared from behind some of the crates in the form of a massive ball of mud, one that continued to swell up larger and larger and larger. Several crates were shoved aside as Shinji continued to build himself up bigger and bigger.

Until he literally exploded.

Taking a step backwards as one of her allies blew like Mount Vesuvius, Goldie watched in astonished confusion as scraps of clay Shinji felt up into the air, only to come raining down upon the rooftop and everyone on it. The goons they hired groaned in dismay as they were pelted with living clay, something Goldie understood well when she herself wound up with several blobs of Shinji marking her clothes. "Don't you worry about Shinji, troops. He'll come right out in the wash," Joker R assured them with a wicked smirk. "I know this from personal experience."

Making a note to never, _ever _ask about this, Goldie continued to ponder what Joker R had in mind. Right up until Shinji's garbled voice was heard crying out, "Hey! I - I got her, J-san!"

Swiveling her gaze about, Goldie watched as several clods of Shinji seemed to levitate near some of the crates, while something seemed to wipe those clods away. _Of course! Why didn't _I _think of that?!_ the mind-manipulator demanded of herself. _Shinji's made of _living _clay! He feels what any part lands on! And even if our unwanted guest is invisible, that doesn't make them intangible!_

With a grin nearly as broad as Joker R's, Goldie watched as the stray globs of Shinji swarmed in on the few floating ones. Bypassing crates, vents, and even his own teammates, the clay child's fragments came together about their invisible intruder, assembling themselves about the invader that had already disabled two of their crew. _And now that I know _precisely _where you are...!_ Goldie thought as she raised the photonic scrambler at the wretched little gremlin in her perfect scheme, _...let's see what you look like!_

With that, Goldie pulled the trigger, discharging a single burst from her weapon, nowhere near enough to register on any scanners as more than a momentary blip. A single burst that rushed towards the still-forming Clayface, and the prisoner he held.

As soon as the burst struck home, it washed over its victim, highlighting the frame of a girl, somewhat taller than Minnie May but not as tall as Rally. And as the photonic scrambler had its way with whatever stealth technology the girl was employing, she slowly faded into view. And to Goldie's considerable surprise, she saw no black on the intruder's garb, nothing to indicate that she was a Bat or related to any Bat Family. Instead, she saw the brilliant colors of red, white, and blue marking her frame. A brilliant white star garnishing her chest, and golden trim about her suit. A gold and silver utility belt hung about her waist, and large red pouches were attached to her thighs. A strange metallic collar hung about her neck, and she wore a blue helmet with a red-tinted visor, leaving only her mouth exposed to the air. She bore red gauntlets and boots, and upon her left arm was very familiar shield.

"Wha-?!" Joker R cried out in a mix of surprise and disappointment. "Aw, you're no Bat!"

"Indeed, she isn't. But I _do _think I know who she is," Goldie purred, smiling contently now that she had her captive contained, and more importantly, a visible target for Rally to put down at any time. "Mari, isn't it? Mari Illustrious Makinami?"

His eyes going wide with shock, Joker R groaned despondently. "She's a _Mari _variant on top of anything else?! Almost as big a loon as me, but without any of the style?" Letting out an even more pathetic groan, the Ranma variant looked up at the sky before letting his arms flop down to the sides. "And to think I had such high hopes..."

As Shampoo and Hikari moved to comfort their clown compatriot, Goldie looked over at Jinnai. "How much longer until the party starts?"

Smiling the infamous Jinnai smirk, Scarecrow answered, "Two minutes and counting, Goldie!"

Heaving a deep breath of satisfaction in the knowledge that her scheme was again moving ahead as it should be, Goldie nodded. "Then get the rockets ready," she ordered. "I've been waiting for this fireworks display for a _very _long time, and I want for _everything _to be perfect!"

Nodding, Jinnai promptly went to work, leaving Goldie to focus on her unwanted guest. Leaving her to play one of her favorite games; games of the mind. "So...I have to admit to being surprised," she cooed as she studied the girl before her. "I always knew that there was a chance that one or more of you heroic types might put in an appearance. Your kind certainly makes a habit of that. But...I would never believed that such a primitive creature such as yourself would have blundered into my business." When the Mari frowned dangerously, saying not a word in response, Goldie simply smirked. "I _have _heard about you, you know. I make it a habit of keeping track of all you so-called heroes that arrive in Coreline. After all, you never know who might get in the way...or who might make a convenient pawn...or even a plaything."

The Captain America amalgam remained silent even as Clayface wrapped tightly about her. She just stared at Goldie with eyes filled with disgust.

"What, don't have anything to say?" Goldie wondered with a raised eyebrow. "I find it hard to believe that any Mari and _especially _you could ever keep your mouth shut. In fact, I'm amazed you've managed to stay silent this long." When the Mari variant again failed to rise up to this bait, Goldie felt a twitch of annoyance, but decided to keep playing her game, at least for a while longer. "That's right. I know _everything _there is to know about you. A pitiful pawn of SHIELD in your own world, a miserable joke in this one, a failure trying so hard to live up to the greatness that is your namesake, only to fall so very short every single time. All the while making pitiful jokes and sorry one-liners to hide the truth of what an absolute fraud you are."

Mari's lips twisted into a tiny sneer, her eyes narrowing with barely expressed fury.

Delighting in this tiny reaction, Goldie proceeded to twist the knife in even deeper. "And what's with that collar you're wearing?" she asked in a playful manner. "That isn't a suppressor collar, is it? The kind some so-called heroes get fitted with when they cause trouble and get put on probation?" Tsking at this, Goldie shook her head in a mocking fashion. "Ooh, you've been such a bad girl, haven't you? And now you're being punished for it. With that collar on, whatever powers you have...well, I suppose you don't even have any right now? Maybe some extra strength, and of course your ability to mimic people like the chattering monkey you are...but that's all, isn't it?"

"Goldie, what are you _thinking_, doing the monologue bit?!" Jinnai wondered disgustedly. "I've seen what happens whenever someone goes with one of those! You're practically _begging _for something to go wrong right now!"

"Don't worry, Jinnai. This little nuisance isn't a threat. She can't even throw her own shield straight," Goldie smirked, eyeing the little girl that was trapped like a fly in amber. "And there's no harm in my amusing myself for a bit before Mr. Miles and Mr. Thornton come out to announce their big initiative."

"Yes, there is," Mari spoke, taking Goldie by surprise. There was no levity to her words, none of the devil-may-care attitude that her breed was so famous for. "You're done, Goldie. All of you are."

Confused by Mari's words and not liking the attitude she was displaying, Goldie frowned and retorted, "And just who do you think is going to stop me? You?" When the Mari variant failed to answer, she asked, "And how do you plan on doing _that _while Shinji's got you all wrapped up?"

"I wasn't," Mari admitted in a hard voice that seemed more fitting for a Bat. "Which is why I released an ultra-coagulant into his body when he grabbed me. I was just waiting for him to finish hardening."

Goldie's eyes went wide, as did the eyes of everyone else there. Which was all the reaction time any of them had before Mari snarled and snapped free of the now-brittle Clayface. Kicking fiercely, the Captain America amalgam sent hardened chunks of Shinji flying in all directions, pelting them all and sending one especially large piece right into Goldie's face.

"Ach! Goldie!" Jinnai cried out as the mind manipulator staggered against him, clutching at her injured face. Her cool, confident mood shattered just as Mari was shattering what was left of her living restraints.

"Radinov...!" Goldie snarled, clutching at her injury, staring bloody murder at the girl responsible as she freed herself. Releasing the mental restraints that kept the Russian Hulk restrained, focusing her natural rage on the girl before her. _"Kill!"_

As the Russian behemoth snarled eagerly, finally free to unleash her rage, Goldie focused her mind on another target. _Rally, have you got a lock on our guest?!_

_Had one the instant Shinji started wrapping himself around her!_ Bullseye replied with feral confidence.

_Then be ready to put her down! I want to let Radinov have her fun! _Goldie explained, watching as the Russian Hulk charged right at the star-spangled girl. _But if something goes wrong -!_

_Got it!_ Rally assured her ally with calm confidence. _All I'll need is one good shot, and she's mine!_

Satisfied with this, Goldie turned her attention to the show she was about to get. Rushing towards her impending victim, looking as unstoppable as a Juggernaut variant, Radinov shook the entire building with her footsteps. _"Diiiiiieee!"_ she roared with a voice of determined hate and joy. Reaching out towards Mari, who narrowed her eyes, raised her shield, and braced herself for impact.

The last second before Radinov could wrap her arms about her, Mari threw herself into a quick controlled roll and narrowing avoided the Russian Hulk's monstrous green hands. As Radinov gasped in confusion, her bestial mind wondering what had happened, Mari came up under her and forced her shield right into her foe's stomach. Coming to her feet even as she forced Radinov off of hers with a strange variant of a judo toss, Mari then whirled about, grabbing the gamma-enhanced assassin by her leg and pivoting on her heels.

_What the -?!_ Goldie wondered, taken aback by this sudden turnaround. _Rally, take her! Don't worry about Radinov! Just _kill _this bitch! _Without hesitation, Bullseye responded, and that response came in the form a high-powered round coming from the gunwoman's weapon. But to the mind-manipulator's surprise, the round simply bounced off. As did the ones that came immediately after. _Rally?!_

_It's her suit! It's made with some kind of special metal! Adamantium or vibranium or something! _Rally protested._ I'll have to go for her visor and - what the -?!_

_Rally?! _Goldie wondered, not liking the sound of her mental voice. And liking it even less when that same voice went silent in her mind. _Rally, what are you -?!_

_"Rrraaarrgghh!"_ Radinov screamed in pure outrage, returning Goldie's attention to the battle before her. To her consummate horror, the gamma-powered assassin was now flying through the air, having been thrown by Mari right at her.

_And in her current state -!_ Goldie thought, knowing full well what happened when gamma mutants got angry. Even if she didn't intend to lash out at her allies, there was no question she could do her and Jinnai a great deal of damage without even realizing it. _Radinov, sleep!_

The instant this powerful mental command flowed from Goldie's mind into the primitive and properly conditioned consciousness of Radinov, the bestial assassin's eyes fluttered, her wrathful snarls subsiding into a dazed grunt, just before fell unconscious.

But even though Radinov had been pacified, she was still airborne, almost half a ton of her. And so Goldie and Jinnai were forced to throw themselves to the sides before being crushed by her immense bulk. "Dammit!" the Scarecrow amalgam hissed even as he got out his infamous mask. "Stupid bitch! Next time, just _shoot her!"_

Goldie didn't know if it was the Mari or herself that Jinnai was calling stupid, but at the moment, she wouldn't have blamed him either way. "Alright, you, I've -!" she snarled at Mari - only to freeze when she saw that the Captain America amalgam was holding a gun. And that gun was pointed right at her.

An instant later, a shot was heard, and a painful stinging sensation registered in Goldie's neck. Just before she felt something akin to being struck by lightning before mercifully passing out.

* * *

_So much for the big threats!_ Mari thought as she glanced away from the prone Goldie, the taser round from her gun having done its job well. Just as the remote floater disk she had been using to monitor Rally's movements, to keep ahead of her trained eye and to ultimately incapacitate her with sleeping gas.

But even as Mari studied the prone visage of the evil alternate of Rally Vincent, the image of her lying prone on the floor being displayed on her visor's HUD, she focused on her current predicament. The rest of the Joker R gang was still ready for trouble, as well the goons they had brought with them. Crushette Hopkins was still unaccounted for and was bound to show up, sooner or later, and worst of all, her adversaries looked to be ready to launch the rockets that would plunge this city into madness and win Goldie her prize.

_No time for subtlety. Got to wrap this up and fast, _Mari thought grimly, raising her shield to her foes. _This is where all that training pays off..._

"Have to admit, didn't see this one coming," Joker R admitted. "Well, seeing as it's almost time to launch - or close enough - Hikari, Rei? Do me a favor and pound this pain in the neck bloody red, black, and blue! Everyone else - let's _light _these babies!"

_"No!"_ Mari called out even as the Bane and Killer Croc amalgams launched themselves towards her. Reaching for her utility belt, she brought forth a couple smoke bombs and tossed them past the lumbering behemoths and straight at Joker R and the others. The bombs exploded, releasing plumes of smoke and sending the villains choking and coughing, and most importantly of all, preventing them from launching the rockets for a few more precious seconds.

With Joker R and the others coughing pitifully, Mari took aim at the Hikari Bane's arm, and more importantly, the power enhancer that sent Venom into her brain. Firing her gun, she sent three more taser rounds into it, each round striking the controls that regulated the flow of the powerful drug. Crying out in alarm, Hikari looked down at the device just as it began sending increased amounts of Venom into her system, causing her muscles to bulge horribly.

"No! The Venom!" Hikari cried out as she began swelling hideously. When the Killer Croc amalgam paused to look back at her, the Bane amalgam shook her head frantically. "No - Rei! Stop - her - fir-_arrrgghhh!"_

Rei hesitated just long enough to watch Hikari as she began to grow right out of her clothes, but then renewed her charge. Holstering her gun, Mari reached into her utility belt for another of her gadgets before rushing towards the monstrous crocodile girl. The two superhumans ran full out at each other, with the star-spangled girl leaping into the air, raising her clenched hand. Surprised by this frontal assault, Rei hesitated just long enough for Mari to land right in her face and shove her fist right into her mouth.

"Ha! Are you kidding me?!" came Jinnai's voice even as Rei wrapped her clawed hands about Mari's frame, squeezing with all her strength. Glancing in his direction, Mari watched as he aided Hikari, disconnecting her pump from her brain even as she groaned in pain after the massive overdose she had just suffered. "What kind of idiot would _deliberately _stick her hand into a crocodile's mouth?!"

"Better question!" Mari gritted out as she squeezed the trigger on the device she had rammed down Rei's throat. "What kind of idiot would swallow a mouthful of explosive gel?!"

_"What?!"_ Rei garbled out around Mari's arm and the explosive gel she had just sprayed down the crocodile girl's throat. Taking advantage of her surprise, the patriotic adventuress pushed free of Rei's slackened grip, discharging even more explosive gel into her mouth along the way.

"Enjoy your teeth..._while you can!"_ Mari declared just before thumbing the detonator control. An instant later, an explosion sounded from within the confines of Rei's mouth and throat, staggering the monstrous behemoth and sending sparks of fire and plumes of smoke spilling out of her mouth, nose, and ears. Waving her hands frantically before her face, Rei issued a pained groan before her eyes rolled up into her sockets and she finally collapsed to the ground.

As the fallen Killer Croc amalgam lay about on the ground, moaning pitifully, Mari focused on other matters. The smoke was clearing, and while Hikari Bane was still conscious, she didn't look too good after her forced overdose of Venom. Then she focused on Jinnai, who was wearing his mask and thus had been able to escape the smoke. Even now, he was standing with the kind of swagger one would expect from a Jinnai variant...just before a thick spray of crimson smoke appeared from his mask. "Ooh, nice work, beating down on the monsters in _this _world!" he began as the cloud headed towards Mari. "But let's see how well you do against the monsters rattling around inside your -!"

Two things happened in close succession before Jinnai could finish his speech. The first was a special face-covering slid into place over Mari's mouth, acting to protect her from the Fear Gas. The second was that grabbed her shield from her left arm, and with a quick wind up, sent it flying right into Scarecrow's midsection. With a cry of surprised pain, Jinnai was sent flying towards his compatriots, trailing Fear Gas even as he crashed into one of the goons they had hired even as the shield bounced back towards Mari.

Instants later, cries of absolute panic were heard from the dwindling clouds of smoke, following by the goons the Joker R gang had brought with them running out of them, utterly consumed with fear. Screaming desperately for help, they were blind to everything else, leaving them easy prey for Mari who again grabbed her gun and subdued each of them with a few quick taser rounds.

Making her way over to Hikari, Mari shot her with the last taser round in her weapon's clip. While it would not have been overly effective against her normally, with her body still recovering from the overdose of venom, it was enough to send her into the depths of unconsciousness. And as the last of the smoke cleared, she saw that Jinnai was currently slumped upon the ground, dead to the world. Leaving just two members of the Joker R gang to contend with; Harley Shampoo, and the clown martial artist himself.

"You know, it's a point of pride for me that I don't let little things like having my thugs get trounced or my plans blowing up in my face get me down," Joker R declared, looking hard at Mari even as she holstered her gun. "After all, when you have a life like mine, you have to roll with the punches! And man, have I ever rolled with a _lot _of punches!" Then he looked over at the bodies strewn all over the roof, and the sociopathic clown scowled. "However, one thing I will _never _accept is losing to such a _loser! Shampie!"_

"Got it, J-chan!" Shampoo returned, launching herself towards Mari. Not bother to roll her eyes, the star-spangled girl glanced over at the leader of this group, and noticed as he drew forth his cell phone even as he started towards the controls for the rockets.

_"No!"_ Mari cried out as she launched herself out of the way of Shampoo even as she launched into a flying kick. Without hesitation, the star-spangled girl threw her shield once more, watching as it struck one of the crates and obediently ricocheted off of it, and then flew right into Joker R's chest before making its return trip.

"Ugh...so much for not even being able to throw your shield straight!" Joker R grumbled as Mari retrieved said shield and turned her attention towards Shampoo. Now wielding clownish variants of the maces other versions of Shampoo were known for wielding. the costumed adventuress watched her moves, effortlessly dodging her attacks before again reaching into her utility belt. Grabbing one of her disk weapons, she quickly threw it at her harlequin opponent.

Even as Shampoo moved to dodge the disk, weighted lines appeared from its sides, transforming it into a high-tech bolo. And while she was able to avoid the disk itself, the lines ensnared her, tangling about the crazed Amazon's leg and arm. Slowing her down just enough for Mari to rush in and deliver a crushing series of blows to her head and body.

As Shampoo fell down in defeat, Mari whirled about, and found Joker R grunting in effort as he struggled back up to his feet. Not giving him a chance to do anything else crazy, the red, white, and blue battler marched up to him and hastily drove her foot down towards his face. Unsurprisingly, he rolled out of the way before coming back up to his feet.

Scowling at this, Mari muttered, "Guess I should have expected that you wouldn't go down easy."

"And I should have seen you making such a big mess out of things!" Joker R shot back even as Captain America took a battle-ready stance. "That _is _what you Maris do best, isn't it?"

Mari was considering saying something in return, but before she could, a distant explosion caught her ear, as well as a burst of light. As she and Joker R glanced towards the source, she watched as several fireworks exploded in the night air, sending plumes of brilliant colors throughout the sky. As thousands of people looked on in joy and awe, she returned her attention to her clown antagonist. "The fireworks are starting. Which means that Devon Miles and Peter Thornton will be making speeches and announcing the new anti-drug initiative they and the Governor have been working on," she intoned with a deadly look. "Which means that if you want your little scheme to work to the fullest, you're gonna have to launch those rockets now."

"Ooh, thanks for the reminder!" Joker R returned mockingly. "Don't worry, I'll be sure to get right on it...while you're being turned into _splat!_ Oh, Minnie May!"

Grimacing at this name, Mari glanced about just in time to see a green, musclebound woman leap into view. "Sorry to take so long, J-chan! I had to get the rest of the equipment in place, and -!" Cutting herself as she landed on the roof, the Minnie May Hopkins variant looked about in astonished shock at the decimated members of the Golden Four and Joker R gang. "Sweetie, what happened?!"

_"She _happened! And as much as I would love to give her the beating she deserves myself, I have fireworks to launch!" Joker R hurriedly explained, pointing at Mari. "So do me a favor and get some licks in for me while I send out the party favors!"

"Gladly!" Crushette announced, cracking her knuckles while Mari readied herself. For while she was only about six and a half feet, she was still a Hulk. And Mari had no illusions about what would happen if she managed to land a blow.

Crying out in homicidal glee, Minnie May launched herself at Mari, firing off a punch that would split a mountain in two. And it was only through a combination of powers that hadn't been nullified by the suppressor collar she wore and a lot of recent training that Mari was able to avoid the blow and wrap her arms about the gamma mutant's forearm. Using Minnie May's momentum against her, the Super Soldier was able to launch her into a respectable judo throw.

Unfortunately, Minnie May's momentum didn't carry her very far. And as soon as she landed, she scrambled back up to her feet. "Ooh, you're in trouble now!" Joker R gloated even as he prepped the rockets for launch. "It's just too bad you can't get Goldie to shut my little Crushette down the way she did Radinov! But - oh, well! I guess that's just how the cookie crumbles!" Chuckling dementedly even as the gamma mutant again launched herself at Mari, he added, "Not to mention your bones, brains, heart, lungs, and -!"

Preparing herself to launch Minnie May with another toss, knowing exactly where she would put her this time, Mari braced herself...only to start when twin beams of energy lanced into the gamma mutant's side. Surprised by this affront and taken off balance, Crushette was launched up off her feet and off the roof.

_"What the -?!"_ Mari and Joker R exclaimed simultaneously, looking about towards the source. Only for both their eyes to widen at the sight of what looked like a suit of Iron Man armor, only heavily modified from the original design. This particular suit was clearly meant for a girl of roughly Mari's age, and its design bore a heavy influence from giant robot anime and manga.

"Wow, nice party!" came an electronically distorted voice that was a perfect match for Mana Kirishima. "Hope you don't mind me crashing it!" With that, she angled her chest forward, and from the arc reactor in her chest, unleashed a potent unibeam that smashed into the crazed clown, driving him into the roof.

Looking down at the foe Iron Maiden so readily defeated, Mari scowled irritably before turning her gaze up at the armored superwomen. "What are _you _doing here?!" she irately demanded. "I had this under control!"

"Yeah, I know. Right until the green crazy girl showed up!" Iron Maiden retorted in what was supposed to be a warm-yet-teasing manner. A manner that soon turned grim when she added, "And speaking of..."

Mari already heard it. A furious growl combined with a whooshing of the air, followed by something heavy coming down on the concrete. "You think you can just blast me away, huh?!" Minnie May demanded, her green features twisted with outrage. "Well, _nobody _messes with Crushette Hopkins _or _her sweet Joker and gets away with it!"

Glancing away from the furious gamma mutant, Mana suggested, "Here's an idea. Let's put down Ms. Anger Management, tie up these goons, and get back to how you were handling everything afterwards?"

"Fine," Mari returned, glowering at the enraged Crushette. Bracing herself for further battle even the gamma mutant charged her and Iron Maiden.

* * *

"This is _not_ how I wanted to spend my Fourth of July, Sid," Mana grumbled as she placed the neuro-disruptors on the now-prone Minnie May.

"Yeah, I know," Sid returned in a sympathetic manner. "I was hoping for a nice, quiet night out on the town myself."

Nodding in response, Mana stood up straight to survey the handiwork of herself and the Mari variant she had encountered. Every member of the Joker R gang and the Golden Four was now securely bound and secured, including Rally, whom Iron Maiden had found sleeping like a baby at a nearby building, gun still in hand. Of course, the armor-user knew how long such bindings would _not _last when the superhuman maniacs finally woke up. "You _did _contact the Champions, let them know the kind of mess we've got here, right?"

"Yup!" Sid promptly confirmed. "They're sending a team over her to pick them all up."

Nodding to this, Mana remarked, "I just hope they don't send Martian Manhunter Hikari to help." Wincing as she looked at the Joker Ranma and Bane Hikari that they had secured, she thought of the horror stories that came of the Martian Hikari's attempt to link with the clown's mind, as well as her trying to deal with her evil counterpart. "A Joker's mind is _never _a nice place to be."

"Tell me about it. Or better yet, _don't,"_ Sid remarked as Mana looked over at the Captain America that had done most of the dirty work there. All the while thinking she wasn't acting much like the costumed hero she was an amalgam of, and was _definitely _not acting like any Mari she had ever met.

Ever since they had managed to defeat Minnie May, she had worked in silence to secure the Joker R gang and Golden Four. And since she had released her faceplates, Mana could easily see the anger and frustration creasing her expression, making her look more like she should be wearing a Bat costume, or at least an outfit belonging to a member of the Bat family. _And the fact that she's obviously on probation...that's not good,_ Mana knew as she studied the collar the girl wore. _What's the deal with her, anyway? She's not acting at all like any Mari I've ever met..._

Considering this for a moment, Mana then asked the other girl, "All done?"

A beat passed as the Mari variant paused to consider the prone villains. "Yeah. It's not great, but...it'll do for now." Frowning at this decidedly un-Mari-ish statement, Iron Maiden looked on as the other girl sighed. "Look, I...I guess I should thank you for...showing up when you did. I...I might not have been able to stop them myself. At least...not in time." Blinking a few times at this, Mana was to ask what she meant by this when Mari continued with, "Say...how'd you happen to...?

"Find you? Dumb luck," Mana admitted, sliding up her faceplates to look the other girl with her own eyes. "The Foundation asked me and a few other metas to keep an eye on things. With both heads of the Foundation out in the open, you can bet they weren't taking any chances." As Mari nodded her understanding, Iron Maiden shrugged. "Anyway, I was doing a sweep of this area when I picked up a strange energy reading. Wasn't much, but I figured it might be worth a look, so..."

"Must've been the photonic scrambler Goldie used on me," Mari commented, looking over at the prone leader of the Golden Four. "Jinnai said it might show up on scanners."

"Well, he was right, luckily enough," Mana confirmed. "The reading didn't last long; just a faint blip, and I almost missed it. But Sid said it might be something bad - like a photonic scrambler - so I decided to look around. But with the energy reading so brief, I couldn't get an exact lock on the source, so I had to search for a while." Then she glanced over to where Minnie May lay and shrugged. "Lucky thing I noticed her. She led me right here. And...well, the rest, you know."

Nodding, Mari then sighed sourly. "Dammit...if I had known that a photonic scrambler would've made people sit up and take notice, I'd have gotten one myself..."

"Not very likely!" Sid remarked in a singsong fashion. "That kind of tech is way up there on the list of illegal toys! Not the kind of thing someone on probation could get her hands on!"

As Mari's expression soured that much more, Mana sighed. "Thanks a bunch, Sid," she muttered before rolling her eyes. "So...what's going on here? What was this all about?" The star-spangled girl frowned at this, prompting the armor-user to elaborate with, "The Joker R gang and the Golden Four? Trying something with the Foundation holding a rally for a big anti-drug push with the Governor, not to mention an election coming up soon with tons of candidates trying to get into office? You don't have to be a genius to know they were up to something, and it was _big!"_

Narrowing her eyes at this, Mari muttered, "I'm not so sure about you not having to be a genius to figure it out, but..."

Frowning at the enigmatic remark that sounded like an attempt at a joke, but wasn't quite, Mana tried again. "So...what were they trying to do?" Glancing over at the equipment both crews had brought there, she continued. "I see a lot of fireworks, and it looks like they had a bunch of chemicals. So...what were they planning on doing?"

A beat passed as Mari studied Mana, her features taut with emotion, completely unreadable. "You really want to know?" When Iron Maiden nodded, making an affirmative noise in her throat, the Super Soldier hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Alright. I'll tell you. But on one condition."

A beat passed before Mana asked, "And...that is...?"

"That you take me seriously," Mari replied. "You don't laugh at me, you don't accuse me of making things up or playing a stupid joke or anything like that. Got it?"

Making a querulous noise, Mana hesitated before asking, "Well, why wouldn't I take you seriously?! In case you haven't noticed, we're surrounded by some of the worst villains in Chicago, and it's clear they were up to something! What's not to take serious?!"

Frowning intently, Mari considered this for a time before nodding. "Alright. Just...hear me out, okay?" When Mana nodded in return, the Super Soldier took a deep breath. "You know how big a drug problem Chicago has, right?"

"Of course," Mana confirmed. "Ever since that Goldie showed up, she's pretty much taken control of the entire drug market here."

"Right. And she has access to pretty much every drug or chemical known," Mari nodded. "Substance D, Digitalin, Plasmids, Nuke, Venom, MGH, as well as chemicals needed for things like Joker Venom and Fear Gas, you name it. Goldie could get it for you...at a price." Then the Super Soldier looked out in the distance. "That's why the Governor contacted the Foundation; to get help in bringing down Goldie and the drug trade. So they got together and came up with this new anti-drug program, which the Governor is trying to get approved."

"Which Goldie wouldn't like," Mana nodded thoughtfully as she studied the fallen villains. "So I guess that explains why they were here. But what exactly were they up to? Loading fireworks with bombs or poison?"

"Worse," Mari stated flatly. "From what I was able to find out, Goldie, Jinnai, and some of her other scientists were able to create a new version of the TITAN formula." The Super Soldier was about to continue, but frowned and asked, "You've heard of that one, right?"

"Of course!" Mana confirmed with a slight shudder. "It's more powerful than Venom, and can turn people into mindless TITAN monsters! And in the cases of metas -!"

"Using it can be fatal. Right," Mari nodded. "Well, this new version is even nastier. Goldie combined TITAN with gammaroids, causing whoever's exposed to turn into a Gamma-TITAN. Even worse, you don't have to be injected with it. Simply touching a small amount of it can cause a transformation."

As these words echoed in Mana's mind, her jaw fell open even a Sid realized what this meant. "And they were going to load this stuff into the fireworks and launch them over the city?!" the AI demanded in pure horror. "But - half the people in Chicago would have been changed into gamma-powered TITAN monsters! The entire city would have been flattened!"

"Worse than that. For good measure, they added some of the Scarecrow Fear Toxin to the mix," Mari informed them, causing Mana to blanch. "Not only would people change into Gamma-TITANs, they'd be hallucinating their worst nightmares at the same time."

The implications of such a scenario fell down upon Mana's head like a ton of bricks. "They'd...oh, god, they'd attack _anything...!"_ she breathed, scarcely able to conceive the horror of such an event. "And anybody that didn't change..."

"If they didn't have powers, they'd be dead," Mari confirmed. "And probably a bunch of people _with_ powers as well."

A shudder ran down Mana's spine as she conceived such a horrendous scenario. As she looked over at the innocuous-looking fireworks, she envisioned their monstrous payload and the doom it represented. "B-but - _why?!"_ she finally asked, glancing at the bound members of both groups. "I - I can see a Joker pulling something like this, but why would _Goldie_ get involved?!"

"Mana's right, you know," Sid pointed out. "All those people dying wouldn't do Goldie's business any favors! And even if this worked, then that wouldn't stop the anti-drug initiative! Even if Devon and Pete and the Governor were killed, the Foundation would carry on and keep pushing for it! If anything, something like this would make it even more likely for the state to pass it!"

"And _that's _exactly what Goldie wanted to happen," Mari replied with a frown.

Mana opened her mouth to reply, only for whatever she had been out to say to fall flat in her mouth, right before her jaw clattered to the ground. "Wait - _what?!"_ she blurted out, trying her best to reboot her brain into something resembling functional order. "Mari, that doesn't make any sense at all! Why the hell would Goldie _want _the state to pass new laws and more that would work _against_ her?!"

"Because she'd figured out a way to make them work _for _her," Mari explained in a terse manner. "You see, they included one more chemical compound with the Gamma-TITAN and Fear Toxin. Or maybe I should say, _half _of one." Furrowing her brows in confusion, Mana looked hard at the Super Soldier. "It's one half of a binary chemical mix. Completely harmless on its own. But when it's mixed with the other half, it forms a powerful consciousness control agent. Perfect for brainwashing and implanting post-hypnotic suggestions in people."

"Goldie's specialty," Mana breathed, again staggered by the scope of what had been planned. "And with so many people infected -!"

"Including the heads of the Foundation, a lot of government higher-ups, and who-knows-_how_-many metas!" Sid chimed in, the AI's voice shaking badly. "But - okay, one half of the control drug was in with the Gamma-TITAN! But how was Goldie going to get people with the other half?!"

"She wasn't. The local law enforcement, military, and a whole lot of superheroes would have done it for her," Mari informed them, twisting Mana's stomach even further. "Gamma-TITAN has a lot in common with regular TITAN, so the same drug used to counter TITAN would have worked on it as well."

"So? What's that have to do with anything?!" Mana demanded.

"The fact that the process of making the cure is long, slow, and doesn't make much in the way of anti-TITAN," Mari informed the other superwoman. "In fact, anti-TITAN's so rare, there's only one place in all of Chicago with a supply of it; a medical company specializing in agents for treating dangerous drugs." Giving this a moment to sink in, the star-spangled girl gave the armored adventuress a look before asking, "Now, if you do enough digging, guess who happens to own that company?"

Her heart sinking right into her toes, Mana breathed, "Goldie."

"Right," Mari nodded. "Pretty sneaky, huh? People pay her for her poisons, and the government and hospitals pay her for the things they need to treat those poisons. No wonder she's made it so big in this city."

Her eyes wide with horror, Mana took a long, hard look at the woman that had set all of this in motion. "So the instant we started curing people of the Gamma-TITAN...we'd be creating the mind control serum _inside_ their bodies!"

"Exactly," Mari declared with a slight note of satisfaction. "Now, from what Hopkins was saying, I'm guessing she and some more of Goldie's people were setting up some kind of machine to help her implant whatever kind of suggestion she needed in everyone as soon as we started treating the Gamma-TITANs. And as soon as that happened...she'd basically have the Foundation, the state government, and a lot of other important people in her pocket." As Mana groaned in low horror at thought of such a thing, the Super Soldier continued. "And once that happened, the success of the initiative would only have worked for her. She would have made it look like the anti-drug push was working, that she was taking a beating, maybe even put in prison -"

"All the while she was bleeding the Foundation and the entire state for anything and everything she wanted!" Mana gasped, shaking her head in low horror. "And if you hadn't figured all this out and tracked them down...!"

At this point, a tiny semblance of the cat-like smile worn by so many other Maris appeared on Captain America's face. A smile that was ruined when Sid demanded, "But if this is all true, then why'd you try and take them all down by yourself?! Especially with a suppressor collar around your neck?! Why didn't you tell somebody like the Champions or Avengers Infinity or - or - or _somebody?!"_

Her features hardening into a scowl that sent Mana back a step, Mari demanded, "And what the hell makes you think that I _didn't?!"_

"What?" Mana breathed in confusion. "But - then why -?!"

A strange sound cut Mana off. The sound like that of several jets approaching. Looking about, the armor-user saw a couple VTOL jets, helicopters, and other airborne craft approaching their position. "Well, this looks my cue to leave," Mari declared grumpily. "Be sure to tell whoever's in charge about this whole mess for me, okay?"

Not waiting for Mana's approval, Mari darted away from her. Watching as she made her way to the other side of the roof, Iron Maiden raised her hand in protest. "H-hey, wait a second!" she called out. "Where're you going?! You need to tell them about this yourself! _You're _the one who stopped Goldie from pulling this off, right?"

Pausing to look back over her shoulder, Mari looked hard at Mana for a brief time before asking, "And who do you think is going to believe _that?"_

"Huh?!" Mana started, unable to fathom the meaning behind the Super Soldier's words. And before she could ask anything further, Mari stepped off the edge of the roof and disappeared. "Wha- _no!"_

Without a second thought, Mana slid her faceplate back into place and fired her repulsors. Launching herself into the air, she hurriedly flew to the other side of the building and began searching for any sign of Mari

Only to find no trace of her at all.

"What in the -?!" Mana demanded as she looked this way and that, her armor's scanners searching for any sign of the Super Soldier. Anything to indicate where she had gone. But ultimately, finding no trace of her.

_But...!_ Mana breathed, trying to make sense of this. _Where could she have...?!_

"Iron Maiden! Attention, Iron Maiden!" came a voice over a speaker. Looking up in surprise, Mana saw a highly advanced VTOL craft hovering just overhead, panning a searchlight at her. "This is the Champions, Iron Maiden! Please come aboard for debriefing!"

Blinking a few times at this, Mana sighed wearily. "This is _definitely_ nothow I wanted to spend my Fourth of July..."

* * *

Author's Note: I wrote this story for the Coreline challenge being hosted by Marcoasalazarm on DeviantArt. But then I decided that I should share it over here on FFNet.

For those of you wondering what the heck Coreline is...well, here's the opening narration regarding this mega crossover, as written by Marcoasalazarm:

''It has been ten years since the end of the world as we knew it. A world-wide Internet infection by an unusual type of virus (called CLULESS) was the trigger. Reality was torn to bits, never to come back fully to normal.

90% of mankind vanished without a trace for 23 hours. The things we believed to be Fictional appeared in their stead. The battles that followed devastated the world.

And once the 23 hours ended, mankind came back, adapted to this new world, willing to embrace the Fictions with open arms... something that many of those who survived the "23 Hours of Madness" are not willing to accept, nor take lying down.

This is an Era of Badass. The Tropes mold your destiny. Out in the open and within the shadows, it is the Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny-Good versus Evil, Real versus Fiction, Canon versus Non-Canon, Rationality versus the Rule Of Cool, the final victor still undetermined.

No place is "safe", only "safer". And outside of it, there is a Multiverse and one timeline-the CORE timeLINE, "Coreline", "C-Line" or "The Line" for short-slowly going crazier.

We bid you welcome. Leave your sanity at the door. And for what's worth, enjoy your stay.''


	2. A True Story Told, A Search For A Hero

Legends Of The Fourth of July

Chapter 2: A True Story Told, A Search For A Hero

"I. Don't. _Gott-_damn _believe this!"_ shrilled the Asuka variant that stood before Iron Maiden, her cheeks flushed with rage. "I just don't believe it! You're telling me that the Joker R gang and Golden Four came _this _close to destroying and brainwashing _all of Chicago all at once...!"_ she cried out, pinching her thumb and forefinger extremely close together, "and the only one who saw _any _of this coming was a _Mari Makinami?!"_

"Yeesh, and I thought the Shikinami versions of Asuka were supposed to have longer fuses than the Sohryus," Sid muttered in Mana's ear, making sure that no one else heard her. "I'm surprised the neighbors aren't complaining...in _New Jersey!"_

Too tired and strung out by what was happening to even think the AI's words were funny, Mana just looked at the Asuka before her. She was an amalgam of DC's Captain Marvel, and wore the traditional Mary Marvel outfit; golden boots and armbands, a red shirt and skirt combo with golden trim and a golden lightning bolt on her chest, and a white cape with gold trim. She was as powerful as a member of the Marvel family, and had the anger issues of an Asuka. And unfortunately for Iron Maiden, she was presently the focus of that anger.

They were presently onboard a Quinjet that Stingray Industries had purchased from Stark Industries for the Champions to use, and where Mana had recently given the Captain Marvel amalgam a full report regarding what had just happened while several other Champions and their support personnel worked to round up the defeated villains and make sure they were securely confined before any of them regained consciousness. Unfortunately for Iron Maiden, it was a report that made the Asuka variant very, _very _unhappy.

"And that she was not only able to piece this all together all by herself, but was even able to _single-handedly _take down two of Chicago's worst gangs?! All while we were standing around, twiddling our thumbs?!" Marvel Asuka demanded with even greater heat. "Are you _for real?!"_

Making a sound of hesitation in her throat, Mana considered what to say. "Well...not _single-_handedly..." she warily began. "I mean...I took down Joker R myself, and...we had to work together on Minnie May, so -"

"Is this a joke?!" Asuka shrilled furiously, stopping Mana in her tracks and very nearly knocking her faceplate back down over her exposed features. "I can't - huh?!" A beeping sound caught the fiery redhead's attention, prompting her to raise her armband, from which projected a holographic window. "Oh, Airstrike! How's the cleanup going?"

"Almost done," came the woman projected on the hologram, a woman that had the features of a Rally Vincent variant, but she was wearing the Warbird-type costume of Ms. Marvel. "The Golden Four are all contained - and believe me, I'm a _lot _happier knowing they're be off the streets!" Then her eyes narrowed with disgust. _"Especially_ their Bullseye!"

"I know how you feel. I've run into my share of evil mes," Asuka replied sympathetically. "What about the Joker R gang?"

"Contained as well. For the most part, anyway," Airstrike returned with a slight frown. "There's been no sign of Nao's power ring. And while we've packed up all of the Clayface Shinji we could find, it looks like there's still some of him that isn't accounted for."

"So part of this Clayface managed to escape?! With a Sinestro Corps power ring?!" Asuka demanded irately. "Great...just _great...!"_ Raising her eyes skyward as if to ask the heavens 'Why me?', she then returned her attention to the Rally variant. "What about the fireworks? Has the analysis team finished with them?!"

"Almost. They've been able to confirm what Iron Maiden told us," Airstrike reported. "They were all loaded with a hybrid of gammaroids and TITAN, as well as Fear Toxin...and another compound."

A beat passed in silence before Asuka prompted, "And is it...?"

"The analysis team is still working on that one. But they have confirmed that it _could _be used to create a consciousness control drug." Then Airstrike scowled dangerously before adding, "And given that a _Goldie_ was in on this, I'd bet my _life_ that that's _exactly_ what it was for."

Wincing in almost physical pain, Asuka growled deep in her throat before continuing. "Alright. As soon as the analysis team gets done, have all the fireworks secured for disposal. And see if SHIELD can run down this company that's supposed to be owned by Goldie! If that pans out, I want a warrant to raid the place so we can check their stores of anti-TITAN!"

"Right, got it," Rally returned with a nod. "Airstrike out."

As the hologram winked out of existence, Asuka turned her furious gaze at Iron Maiden once more. "I don't believe this..." she grumbled sourly before turning to another Champion. "Yui? Any luck figuring out which Mari made this mess?"

"Some," came the synthetic voice of an amalgam of Yui Ikari and the Vision. Mana didn't know the full story about her, but she had heard of a world where, upon failing to retrieve Yui from Unit 01 after her absorption, Gendo found a way to build an android body that could house his wife's mind and soul. She looked much like a traditional Vision, save that her android body was mostly white, and with an organic looking face and a head of hair. "As it happens, there have been more than one Mari Illustrious Makinamis amalgamated with Captain America," she explained as she worked the computer console before her. "Most have taken on other identities since arriving in Coreline. Furthermore, there is only one that retains the name of Captain America and is presently on probation."

"So what can you tell me about her?" Asuka demanded as Yui brought up the image of the Mari Iron Maiden had encountered.

"She is similar to most who carry the name Captain America. However, she had been augmented by two versions of the Super Soldier Serum, both before her arrival," Yui explained as she studied the information. "She is also accomplished in some forms of magic and -"

"I meant, what can you tell me that would explain how she got into this mess?!" Asuka cut in impatiently. "And why is she on probation?!"

"There is nothing to indicate how she came to be involved with the Joker R gang or the Golden Four," Yui promptly reported. "However, I can tell you that she is on probation for causing destruction of public property, as well as aiding and abetting known super criminals."

"Great! Just _perfect!"_ Asuka growled, throwing up her arms in disgust. "And _this _is the person that I'm gonna have to tell Misato and the heads of the Foundation is responsible for saving all of Chicago?! _Of all the -!"_

"Hey, wait a minute!" Mana protested despite everything. "Aiding and abetting known super criminals?! Are you serious?!"

A beat passed even as Yui turned and spoke in perfect android. "That _is _what her file indicates."

Issuing a choked laugh, Iron Maiden muttered, "Look, I'm already regretting the fact that I got involved in this mess, but...okay! I can _definitely _believe what you say about the property damage thing, but aiding and abetting?! This girl took down all those creeps down there, _including a full-fledged gamma mutant_ all by herself, and you're telling me she's in league with criminals?!"

A beat passed as Asuka visibly considered this before asking, "Yui...who was the judge at this Mari's probation hearing?"

"According to this, the judge responsible for her sentencing was a variant of J. Jonah Jameson," Yui quickly reported.

Both Captain Marvel and Iron Maiden groaned at this. There were dozens of J. Jonah Jameson alternates in Coreline, and while most of them had gotten together and organized Daily Bugle Communications so they could broadcast their contempt for anyone in costume, some of them had gone into politics. "Talk about bad luck, getting one of _him _at her trial!" Mana groaned sympathetically. "Those guys are about the biggest hardasses in the entire multiverse! I don't even want to think about what he would have done if Mari had been a Spider!"

Glancing between Yui and Mana, Captain Marvel groaned. "Look...forget about Jameson for a moment! The fact remains that we still have no idea where this Mari ran off to or how she got her information!" she declared heatedly. "And more importantly, if she _knew _about what Joker R and Goldie had planned, then why the hell didn't she contact the Foundation or one of the superhero teams?! Why'd she try to handle this by herself?!"

A beat passed as Mana flashed back to when she had just finished hearing Mari explain the horrible nightmare that had very nearly befallen Chicago. "Actually...Sid asked her about that, right before you showed up," Iron Maiden remarked in a solemn voice. When Asuka looked at her, gesturing for her to continue, the armor-user continued with, "And she asked...what made us think that she hadn't?"

Blinking a few times in response, Asuka scowled and placed her hands on her hips. "What the hell is _that _supposed to mean?!" the Captain Marvel amalgam wondered. "If we'd been told that someone was going to turn everyone in Chicago into TITAN monsters so they could brainwash them, we'd have been here and coming down on Joker R and Goldie so hard they'd have thought a _planet _just fell on their heads! We'd -!" A sudden beeping interrupted Asuka's tirade, prompting her to look at the android Yui. "What is it _now?!"_

"I'm detecting three small objects incoming," Yui announced as she worked the controls of her station. "Two are humans riding small vehicles. The third is a human flying unassisted."

"Can you identify them?!" Asuka wondered impatiently.

"Working," Yui replied even as Mana shifted about to get a better look as the Vision amalgam adjusted the cameras and zeroed in on the approaching persons. "Identities found. One of them is a variant of Maria Vincennes who wields an Asgardian hammer," she announced, focusing on one of the group. A blonde girl wearing Asgardian battle armor and was presently riding an mechanical chariot with two ram-shapes at the front. "Codename: Thunderstrike." A few seconds passed as she focused on another of the group, a man wearing a purple costume and was riding a skycycle. "The second is a variant of Clint Barton. Codename: Hawkeye."

"Wha- a canon and an amalgam _together?!"_ Asuka demanded, genuinely surprised. Not that Mana was surprised. Canons was the term used to refer to fictions that were relatively unaltered from the source materials they came from. They often had made different choices than were seen in the animes, movies, and so on they had originated from, but were more-or-less the same exact people. Amalgams was the term used for characters that were essentially fusions of multiple types of character, such as Supergirl Misato and Shinji Ikiryo, or even Mana herself. But while the opinion canons had towards amalgams varied from person to person, it was very rare for them to spend any real amount of time together. "What about the third one?"

"The third is a Steven Rogers variant," Yui informed them. "Codename: Captain America."

As the camera zoomed in on the third, Asuka's mouth fell open. "Wha- and he's _flying?!"_ she demanded incredulously. Sure enough, it was a Steve Rogers, wearing the traditional costume of Captain America. His shield displayed proudly on his left arm as he soared through the sky with the ease, grace, and poise of a Superman variant. "Is he wearing jet boots?!"

"Negative," Yui promptly reported. "This Captain America is flying completely unassisted." As Asuka swung her bulging eyes at Mana, who could only stare in return, the android added, "Captain Marvel, they are approaching the crime scene perimeter."

_"What?!"_ Asuka bellowed for what felt like the umpteenth time since Mana had met her. "They - put me on external speakers!" Waiting just long enough for Yui to comply before speaking. "Attention, approaching metahumans! This is Captain Marvel of the Champions! You are approaching a secure crime scene! Please turn around, or we will be forced to take you into custody!"

Both Thunderstrike and Hawkeye paused at this, but the Captain America proceeded a moment longer before coming to hover just on the perimeter of the crime scene. "We mean no intrusion, Captain Marvel," he announced with the voice of pure dignity and honor that it seemed only someone who was a true Captain America could manage. "I am Steven Rogers, Captain America of Team 8096/422012 of Avengers Infinity. On my right is Hawkeye of that same team, and on my left is Thunderstrike, a friend and ally of ours."

"Speak for yourself, old man," Hawkeye grumbled beneath his breath.

"We've come here because we are looking for a friend, and we have information that indicated that she would be here," Captain America went on, not even bothering to acknowledge Hawkeye's caustic remark. "And judging from the fact that you're here, I think it's safe to say that she's either here, or she _was _here not that long ago."

Making a strange noise in her throat at this, Asuka studied the Captain America for a time before asking, "Does this friend...have a name?"

"Her name is Mari Illustrious Makinami. And like myself, she also carries the name of Captain America," the Super Soldier declared resolutely.

"You know, Cap, my head hurts every time you call her that," Hawkeye snarked.

As Captain America shot Hawkeye a dirty look, Asuka frowned in consideration. "Alright. You have permission to come aboard the Quinjet," she declared in a stern manner. "But you _better _have some answers for me!"

"Thank you, ma'am," Captain America returned even as Asuka pressed the control that caused the Quinjet's ramp to open and extend. "Hawkeye, Thunderstrike, land and then follow me in."

"Sure, whatever you say, old man," Hawkeye muttered even as Thunderstrike complied. "Assuming we can find someplace safe to park!"

As the archer continued to complain, Captain America effortlessly and gracefully flew into the waiting Quinjet. Easily landing on the entry ramp, he then walked up to the small crew, moving straight and tall. "Captain Marvel, I presume," he greeted Asuka, holding out his hand in greeting.

"You presume correctly," Asuka nodded, accepting his hand in her own. As the two shook hands, she frowned slightly. "Hmph...you've got a pretty good grip..."

Nodding to this, Captain America paused to study the others present. "Hmm...I didn't know that the Champions had a Vision variant," he remarked as he studied the android. "Yui Ikari, correct?"

"That is correct, Captain," Yui returned with a polite bow of her head.

Smiling cordially, Captain America looked over at Iron Maiden. "And you're Mana Kirishima," he declared without hesitation. "Tony Stark told me about you."

"Really?!" Mana bleated in clear surprise.

Nodding, Captain America then admitted, "Well, at least _one _of them did. We have...several of them at the Infinite Avengers Tower."

"Yeah, and they're _all _a bunch of headaches!" came Hawkeye as Thunderstrike carried him onboard. "Do you have any idea what it's like to be in a room with _dozens _of Tony Starks, each going on about how brilliant they are and how many girls they've scored?!" Visibly shuddering at this, the archer approached. "And speaking of headaches...any idea where Cap's Mari is? In jail would be my guess."

As Captain America directed a stern look at Hawkeye, Asuka replied, "We'll get to that in a moment. For now, I'd like a few answers myself." Then she directed her gaze at the Super Soldier. "Starting with you, Captain." When Captain America frowned slightly, the Captain Marvel variant stated, "I've never heard of a Captain America that could _fly._ And your grip was a _lot _stronger than that of a normal human."

"Ah. _That!"_ Captain America nodded, a slight smile curling his lips. "Well, I'll explain. Stark Industries, Wayne Enterprises, and several other companies and superhero groups have recently been working with certain high-level martial arts masters in order to establish academies for the better training of the heroes of the world."

Blinking in clear surprise, Asuka returned, "This is the first _I've _heard about it!"

"He _is _correct, Asuka," Yui announced, much to the German's surprise. "It is a joint effort being carried out by several corporations, including Stingray Industries. It is a fairly recent endeavor, which may be why you have not heard about it."

"That's right," Captain America confirmed. "And as part of the deal, certain representatives of Avengers Infinity and the Justice League Unlimited have been chosen to train with powerful martial artists. Sort of a trial run before the academy officially opens."

Folding her arms across her chest, Asuka asked, "And I take it that you were one of the heroes selected?"

"That's correct," Captain America confirmed with a nod. "I've been receiving training on chi manipulation, unleashing the body's full potential -"

"And flying," Asuka broke in with a strange look on her face. "So I'm guessing you were trained by a DB?"

A strange frown appeared on Captain America's face. "A...DB...?"

"She means the Goku you were training with, Cap!" Hawkeye interjected before looking over at Asuka. "And I thought Thor had a rough time with slang..."

"Well, _that _explains a lot!" Mana remarked with a raised eyebrow. "Still...I never thought I'd meet a Captain America who could _fly!"_

"I'm still getting used to it myself," Captain America admitted with a smile that was somewhat more boyish than Mana would have expected. "But...it _does _come in handy."

"Excuse me, friends," Thunderstrike began, speaking in a tone that resembled Ye Olde Butcherede Englishe. "But are we not forgetting the reason for which we are here?"

"You're right, Thunderstrike. My apologies," Captain America replied with a bow of her head. "Captain Marvel, a short while ago, Thunderstrike arrived at the place where she and Mari live, only to find it empty, save for a message she left us. The message indicated that Chicago was in great peril, and that she had tried and failed to contact various teams of heroes to deal with the situation. So even though she was still on probation, she decided that she had no choice but to try and combat a threat to the whole of Chicago by herself. Upon finding this message, she contacted me and asked for my help in finding Mari, and if necessary, deal with the Golden Four, the Joker R gang, and their plan for this city."

"A waste of time you decided to drag me along for. Especially since it looks like whatever they were up to already went up in smoke!" Hawkeye grumbled.

"Then, Captain America, it seems that we have a lot of talking to do," Asuka declared, looking somewhat annoyed and impatient. "I have a lot of questions regarding this mess, questions that I and my superiors will want to have answered, and from what I can tell, you and your friends here have at least some of the answers." Glancing over at Iron Maiden, she went on to say, "Right now, we have no idea where your Mari is, but we _do_ have good information that she is presently well and unhurt. And once you've answered our questions, we'll help you track her down."

A moment passed as Captain America considered this. "Very well, then," he returned in a stern manner. "Given the situation...we accept your terms."

Asuka opened her mouth to answer, but before she could say anything, Yui spoke up. "Captain Marvel, I just received word from Commander Saotome," the android announced. "She is currently with Devon Miles and Peter Thornton at the Foundation's Chicago Headquarters. She has ordered us to report to her there as soon as we have finished securing the area."

The instant these words were said, Asuka groaned heavily. "This is gonna be one hell of a _lonnnnng_ night..."

* * *

The Foundation's Chicago Headquarters was a good-sized mansion, very much an old world design, and thus quite in keeping with the preferences of Devon Miles. At the same time, it was also clean and functional, which fitted in with the mentality of Pete Thornton. As a result, it was a fitting manifestation of the Foundation and its founders, and a fairly comfortable place to sit and wait...while Commander Misato Saotome and Captain Marvel Asuka were being roasted by said Founders.

_I never thought I'd be _this _glad I turned down that offer of membership as I am now,_ Maria Vincennes thought as she relaxed in the main living room. _It almost makes up...for how I scared I am..._

When the Vanishing had taken place and she and Mari had been deposited in the bizarre amalgamation of worlds that was Coreline, the young woman who had taken on the mantle of Thunderstrike had been terrified. She and the girl known as Captain America were alone in a strange world, caught in utter chaos. There were none of the familiar faces they had known, none of the resources they had depended upon. They had had nothing...but each other.

Even when things settled down and the local government began aiding them, as well as helping them look for any friends or family that might have been deposited in Coreline as well, Thunderstrike had been caught between fury and despair. All the financial resources she had worked so long and hard to develop were gone, the career and reputation she had both as an Evangelion pilot and as a hero of Asgard were gone, the home she had lived in, the friends she had had...all of them lost. Possibly forever.

Through it all, no matter how bad things were, Mari had been right there at her side, refusing to give in to despair. Whatever demons and pain she had felt, she kept at bay with bad jokes and a stubborn refusal to give up, no matter what.

And now, after managing to rebuild, the two of them had started their lives once more. And Maria once again had a family, she had a boyfriend and was forging a future for herself. While the friend that had given her so much encouragement...

_M&M, always together! _Mari joked in Thunderstrike's mind. Even as Maria thought, _What about now? Where are you, Mari?!_

Shaking her head as she thought of the good and trust friend that she tended to bicker with like they were the proverbial old married couple, Thunderstrike was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of voices accompanied by footsteps. "...hope that you will be thorough in your investigation," came a stern voice with an English accent. "By all accounts, we came deadly close to absolute disaster! If that vile woman Goldie and her cohorts had actually _succeeded_ in their scheme...!"

"I know, Mr. Miles," came a wearied, feminine voice even as the speaker and the others descended down the stairs, revealing their identities. The current speaker was Commander Misato Saotome, leader of Stingray Industries' superteam, the Champions. She was presently in her human form, and was wearing the favored work outfits Misato alternates tended to wear. And both she and Captain Marvel Asuka looked like they had been very thoroughly raked over the coals by the two men behind them. "Believe me, I fully understand just how serious this situation is."

"I'm not sure you do," came Pete Thornton. The bald, rotund little man was scowling with enough force to send a Kryptonian running. "That maniac very nearly brainwashed the entire city! Along with ourselves, the Governor of Illinois, most of the state representatives and senators, as well as who knows _how _many other ranking officials and business people! She would have had her hands on the Foundation's resources, countless metahumans...!"

"Indeed. It would have been nothing short of an utter disaster!" Devon Miles declared, his brows furrowed and looking every bit the picture of dignified outrage. "And even worse, we're faced with the possibility that we were warned about it in advance, and that _nobody _took action! It's inexcusable!"

"I agree, sir," Misato assured them both, a tiny flash of green in her eyes making it clear that her patience was nearing its own limits. "But at the moment, that's unconfirmed. And while I intend to conduct a thorough investigation, until we know exactly what did or did not happen..."

Trailing off at this, Misato sighed wearily even as Vision Yui joined them, looking as serene as only a Vision variant could. "Then I _suggest _we get down to finding out what happened!" Pete declared in a manner that made it clear that this was not a suggestion. "Starting with how this girl - what was her name again?"

"Mari, sir," Captain America declared, much to the stout Foundation head's surprise. Coming to stand tall on his feet, the living legend look at both Thornton and Miles. "Mari Illustrious Makinami. And like myself, she bears the name of Captain America." Pausing to study both Foundation heads, the Super Soldier went on to say, "My...apologies for the interruption. However..."

"Oh, no apologies necessary, Captain," Devon assured him, waving aside the Super Soldier's concerns as he approached, holding out his hand. "Devon Miles of the Foundation. And I'm certain you know my associate, Peter Thornton."

"Only by reputation, Mr. Miles. As I also know the good work you and this Foundation have accomplished," Captain America returned, accepting the proffered hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you both in person."

"Ah, the pleasure is all mine, Captain," Devon returned briskly even as he glanced about the others present. "I must say, I truly am grateful for all of you coming to meet with us like this. There's a great deal of confusion surrounding this mess, things we need to sort out, and as quickly as possible."

"Agreed, sir," Captain America nodded even as Thunderstrike, Hawkeye, and Iron Maiden stood as well. "However, that is not the only reason I wish to get this matter settled."

As Devon frowned slightly, Pete nodded. "Ah, yes. Your Mari," he muttered in a distracted fashion. "Captain Marvel reported that you were...acquainted."

"More than that, Mr. Thornton. Mari is a close friend of mine, and I am very concerned with her wellbeing," Captain America firmly declared. "Both in terms of physical condition, and her future." This time, both Foundation heads gave Captain America a blank look. "As I'm sure Captain Marvel also reported, Mari is presently on probation."

"Yes, yes, she _did _mention that," Devon nodded. "Vision reported the...incident she was involved in."

"And as a consequence of this, Mari was forbidden from leaving her home unless she was accompanied by either myself or another licensed superhero," Captain America continued, still speaking with the voice of dignity. "And I am certain that you are all aware of the penalty of violating probation."

"Penalty?!" Iron Maiden piped up, sounding quite surprised.

"Violation of parole carries with it a minimum sentence of five years' incarceration without parole," Vision explained, glancing over at Mana. "As well as an indefinite suspension of hero's license, as well as confiscation of all equipment and -"

_"What?!"_ Mana cried out in horrified astonishment. "But - she just _saved all of Chicago! _You can't possibly -!"

"Young lady, I understand what you're saying. And you're right; from all accounts, this Mari saved both ourselves, and the entire state from falling right into Goldie's hands," Pete promptly assured her. "But the fact remains that we still don't know how she came to learn of Goldie's plans! Or why she didn't warn anyone else about it!"

Frowning at this point, Thunderstrike chimed in with, "The message left Mari for me indicated that she _did _attempt to warn other heroes of the impending threat, as well as the Foundation itself. But that none would listen to her."

"And if that is indeed the case, then we will see that she is given proper restitution for her actions," Devon assured the lady thunderer. "However - and you must excuse my skepticism - I fail to see how she could have given us such a warning, only for it to be so completely disregarded. For certainly, a threat of this magnitude would certainly warrant an investigation."

"I would certainly hope so!" Iron Maiden declared.

"I don't know how such a warning could have been disregarded, sirs. But I trust in Mari, and her message made it clear that she tried to warn others of what was about to happen. And that's good enough for me," Captain America declared. "As such, I would recommend conducting an investigation. To either confirm or deny what she said."

"We're already working on that," Misato announced, glancing over at their Vision. "Yui's already tapped into the phone records and computer communications for the Champions, Avengers Infinity, the Foundation, as well as all phones and email accounts registered in either Mari's or Thunderstrike's name. If there's anything to indicate that she tried to warn us, we'll find it."

"And while we're waiting...this message you spoke of," Devon began, looking intently at Captain America. "Could you show it to us?"

"Of course," Thunderstrike nodded before picking up a small AI module that she had brought in from her War Chariot. "I...had just returned from an extended vacation with my boyfriend when I found a note on Mari's personal computer, indicating that there was a message for me." Pressing a few of the controls, she paused and frowned before admitting, "However...I feel I should mention that I did not watch the entirety of the message."

"Why not?" Mana wondered with a look of surprise.

"Because you saw the part about Goldie's plan," Misato intuited. "And I'm guessing that, by the time you got home -"

"The time for Goldie's and Joker R's fireworks launch had already come and passed," Thunderstrike confirmed. "When I realized that, the only thing I could think of was alerting someone who I knew would listen to me." Indicating Captain America with her head, she added, "Namely, Steve."

"I see," Pete frowned unhappily. "Then perhaps it's time we found out what exactly this girl left for you to hear."

Nodding to this, Thunderstrike pressed a few controls on the AI module. A moment later, a holographic display appeared above the small computer. In it was captured Mari in her battle suit, seated in her bedroom. "Maria...I know this isn't the kind of welcome you were expecting when you got back from vacation, but...I...the city of Chicago, the Foundation...they're all in danger! And if I don't do something, the Golden Four and Joker R gang will destroy the whole city, brainwash everyone there...!"

The Mari in the holographic display shuddered somewhat, as if barely reining herself in. "I know it might seem crazy, but you have to believe me! No one else will!" she pleaded. "I've tried calling _everyone _I can think of! The Foundation, the Champions, the Avengers, JLU..._everyone! _But they won't listen to me!" Pausing to heave a deep breath, the girl before her shook her head slowly. "Look...the Golden Four and Joker R gang has a plan to use the Chicago fireworks show to infect everyone there with gamma-enhanced TITAN! It's all part of her plan to brainwash the people there with one of her mind control drugs, and...I don't know when you're getting back! I hope it's soon! But the fireworks show starts at 9 PM sharp! And as soon as that happens, they'll launch the rockets, and...that'll be it! It's all over! So I _have _to get over there and try and stop them! No one else will!" Swallowing loudly, Mari hesitated before adding, "I hope you get back soon, partner. Because you're the only one I can count on now! No one else will help...not even Uncle Steve..."

A couple questioning glances at Captain America prompted him to explain, "She calls me that sometimes."

"This as far as I watched it before I went to get Steve," Thunderstrike murmured as the video continued.

"...so I'm betting you won't be back in time. And if that's the case, then...I guess I should explain what's going on. So even if you can't stop it, you might be able to help stop Goldie from getting her hooks into the Foundation and everything else," the Mari in the hologram continued. "It all started almost two weeks ago, just after you left. Uncle Steve and I were on our back home after some time training together when we spotted the Nerima Wreckers going after a shipping truck loaded with medicine."

Thunderstrike winced at this, for the Nerima Wreckers were amalgams of the ladies of the infamous Nerima Wrecking Crew, and the Wrecking Crew from one of the Marvel worlds, and were composed of Wrecker Akane and her magical mallet, Thunderball Shampoo, Piledriver Ukyo, and Bulldozer Kodachi. A group of troublemakers that went out of their way to destroy whatever they could, whether they made a buck out of it or not.

"Uncle Steve and I...well, he had to do most of the work," Mari admitted, fingering the collar that had in recent times become the bane of her existence. "But we...he...was able to take them all down. And once he was done...well, the truck had gotten damaged, but most of the containers came through intact. But...not all of them." A beat passed as Mari frowned sadly. "After I'd gotten home, I noticed some stuff on my suit. I wasn't sure what it was, so I had Tai analyze it."

"Tai is the AI of her ship, the _American Dream,_" Thunderstrike said by way of explanation.

"It turned out to be antidote for TITAN, the super drug based on Venom," Mari continued slowly. "But Tai found something else in it, a chemical compound that didn't seem to do anything. But I had him analyze it, and..." At this point, the girl heaved a long, deep breath. "He found out that it could have been part of a binary chemical. One half of a consciousness control drug."

"I did some more digging. Checked out the truck that was shipping the anti-TITAN, where it was going," Mari continued. "After a while, I managed to track down the company that owned it, and...I didn't find anything at first. But...well, Tai couldn't do it alone, so I had him hook into JARVIS at the Infinite Avengers Tower. The two of them did some digging, and...the company is owned by Goldie Musou of the Golden Four!"

"So _that's _how she learned about this," Captain America declared, his eyes lighting with comprehension. "But...if she found out about this back then...then why didn't she come to me about this?! Why didn't she -?"

"As soon as I found out about this, I tried to call Uncle Steve, tell him what was going on," Mari intoned, much to everyone's surprise. "But - it turned out that Tony - or _a _Tony - had found out about me hooking into JARVIS, and...well, he was really mad about it. Wouldn't even listen to me when I tried to explain what I was doing! And all he did was go on and on about how I shouldn't mess with his tech, and if I kept fooling around, he'd call the judge and that I was lucky he wasn't going to tell Uncle Steve about it, and..."

A groan escaped from both Avengers, with Captain America muttering, "Tony...well, _that _explains a lot."

"I was _going _to try and explain what I'd found to the Foundation or someone else after that, but...I realized that I'd have to explain about me using JARVIS to get the information. And as soon as I did _that,_ then they wouldn't listen or they'd put me in jail, or - or something," Mari continued, her frustration all but palpable. "I realized that - I had to get more evidence. _Prove_ to everyone what Goldie was up to!" Giving this a moment to sink in, the young Super Soldier hesitated before continuing. "So...after that...I spent the next few days...sneaking out of town. Going to Chicago."

"Oh, boy," Hawkeye grimaced at this point. "Judge JJ is gonna _love _that!"

"I spent a lot of time, checking out known Joker R hangouts, places owned by Goldie...anything I could think of! But it wasn't until yesterday that I finally figured out what they were up to!" Mari announced. "They've created a new, airborne version of TITAN. Gamma-enhanced, and it transforms people on contact! But even worse, it has the other half of Goldie's mind control formula! So when they try to use the anti-TITAN to cure people, they'll be creating the formula inside of them! And as soon as that happens...that's it. Goldie's won."

"Oh, my..." Devon breathed even as Pete shook his head in disbelief.

"I was able to get evidence of what happened, but...when I tried to contact the Foundation, they wouldn't listen! _Nobody _would!" Mari continued on, sounding almost desperate for someone to listen to her. "Turned out my probation officer had found out about me sneaking out to Chicago! She spent all her time, telling all the superteams I was a crackpot and that no one should listen to me before showing up at our place to try and arrest me!"

"Oh, _great!"_ Misato grimaced with a roll of her eyes. "Just who's her probation officer, anyway?!"

"A variant of Naru Narusegawa," Thunderstrike promptly replied.

"That explains a lot," Pete muttered with a roll of his eyes.

"So...that's it. No one else can help me. No one _will _help me," Mari continued, sounding almost hollowed out. "It's all on me, now. So...Maria, I really do hope you get back in time. And if not..." A beat passed as the girl looked out at them before shrugging and giving a pitiful attempt at a smile. "Wish me luck."

An instant later, the hologram dissolved into static before winking out of existence. Frowning somberly, Captain America drew forth his Avengers ID Card. "JARVIS, come in, please."

"Greetings, Captain America," JARVIS replied in a brisk, polite manner. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"I need to know if Mari contacted you at some time in the last two weeks," Captain America intoned. "It would have happened after our last training session together."

"Yes, sir. Her AI Tai contacted me, and asked for my help in an investigation he and Mari were conducting," JARVIS promptly answered.

A bit of a scowl curled Captain America's brow at this. "So you didn't mention the results of this investigation to anyone else?"

"Negative," JARVIS promptly answered. "Mr. Stark - well, _a _Mr. Stark - was extremely upset that - how'd he put it? - some delusional little tramp was having her way with his property. So he told me not to bother reporting it to anyone."

Frowning somewhat, Captain America intoned, "That doesn't sound like _our _Tony..."

"It wasn't," JARVIS promptly reported. "It was the Mr. Stark from Team TRN123/7122013."

As Captain America scowled, Hawkeye muttered, "Just one of the reasons I hate living in a tower _filled _with Tony Starks. All those brains, and they keep coming up with more and more screwups for the rest of us to clean up."

Shaking his head disgustedly, Devon muttered, "Well, we'll still have to do some investigating, but...well, from what we've heard so far, it sounds like your Mari did what she could."

"Yes, but we should still wait until we've conducted a more thorough investigation," Pete pointed out. "At the very least, we need to see what Vision comes up with."

"Agreed," Devon nodded before glancing about at the others. "Would, uh...any of you like some refreshments? I suspect that this will be a long night..."

* * *

_Worst. Fourth of July. Ever,_ Mana thought as she continued to sit around the Foundation headquarters, nursing what felt like her hundredth cup of coffee to keep from passing out. _Just how much longer are we gonna be stuck here, anyway?! _

Resisting the temptation to lower her faceplate and allow Sid to take over the armor so she could grab a nap, Mana looked at the rest of the people there. Devon and Pete were maintaining exteriors of cool control, but it was clear that they were rapidly losing patience as they worked to unravel this fiasco. Misato and Asuka were even crankier, and everyone was keeping their distance from the purple-haired woman, lest they provoke her into hulking out and smashing everything sight. Thunderstrike was clearly anxious, Hawkeye bored, and Captain America a picture of quiet concern. Only Vision was completely calm and collected as she finished her part of their investigative efforts.

"Commander Saotome," the android Yui announced, catching the gamma mutant's attention. "I've just completed my analysis of the phone and internet records you requested."

Focusing on Yui, Misato glared at her for a moment, as if waiting for her to continue before saying, "And...what did you find?!"

"I've confirmed that their Mari made numerous calls yesterday to various superteams, corporations, and the Foundation," Yui reported, her eyes narrowing ever-so-slightly. "I have not been able to determine the exact nature of their conversations. However, I _have _been able to determine that the actions taken by those she attempted to contact consisted of investigating her background or contacting her probation officer."

"And let me guess," Hawkeye grumbled, looking like he wanted to punch something. "The instant they found she was on probation or got a mouthful of Naru's badmouthing, they forgot all about her and moved on to dealing with any other crackpots or loons they had bothering them."

"That would seem to be the case," Yui confirmed. "I have also confirmed that Probation Officer Naru Narusegawa had a warrant made out for Mari's arrest, and for the confiscation of her suit and equipment. Records indicate that the warrant was finalized earlier this evening. However, they have not been heard from since."

"Most likely, Mari fought back when they tried to arrest her," Captain America noted with a hint of pride. "And won."

Nodding to this, Thunderstrike looked imploringly at Vision. "What about Mari? Has there been any sign of her?"

"Negative," Vision reported, much to Thunderstrike's clear dismay. "There have been no sightings of her since earlier this evening."

Grunting in frustration and concern, Thunderstrike paced about a bit, tightening her grip about her hammer. "Mr. Miles, Mr. Thornton," Captain America spoke, his voice still clear and controlled. "I realize that there is still a great deal that needs to be taken care of. But given what we've been able to confirm thus far, I must ask if you are satisfied that Mari is not at fault in this situation?"

"Well, _I'm _satisfied," Pete muttered, glancing over at his contemporary.

"As I am," Devon concurred with a nod. "All the evidence currently available confirms that she did what she could to prevent this, even before taking matters into her own hands. I certainly can find no fault in this."

"In that case, sirs, I must ask you both a favor," Captain America went on, catching the Foundation heads by surprise. "As you are well aware, Mari remains on probation, and if she were to be arrested, not only would it do more damage to her reputation, but I fear that there may be other, more dire consequences."

"What do you mean?" Devon wondered with a raised eyebrow.

"I mean that its easier for many people to place the blame on others than to admit fault in themselves. And that there is a tendency in those in power to create a scapegoat in situations where this no one at fault, in order to create the illusion of control," Captain America explained. "Especially in situations such as this. The people of Chicago will not be happy when they find out how close Goldie and the Joker R gang came to succeeding in their scheme. They will most likely be afraid, and demand answers."

"As well as accountability," Devon intuited with a slight frown.

"Are you suggesting that we would try and throw Mari under a bus in order to protect our own reputations?!" Pete demanded with a note of outrage.

"Perhaps not yourselves, but there _is _the possibility that _someone _might try to do just that," Captain America declared in a no-nonsense voice. "Now, I realize that, in an ideal situation, Mari would not only go unpunished for doing what she did, she would be thanked, possibly even rewarded for her actions." Then the Super Soldier narrowed his eyes and added, "But we all know the world of politics is hardly an ideal one. And from the perspective of those more concerned with safeguarding their own careers and image, a girl who's already on probation would make for a convenient scapegoat."

A moment of heavy silence passed as both Foundation heads processed these words. "Very true, Captain," Devon finally nodded. "And so I assume you would like our assistance in heading off such efforts."

"Yes, I would," Captain America nodded. "Mari doesn't deserve to be punished for what happened. And I want make certain that she isn't."

Pete glanced over at Devon, who returned his look. "Alright. We'll see about making sure that it doesn't come to that," the portly Foundation head assured Captain America. "We'll have a press release issued, absolving Mari of all blame, and making sure that everyone knows that she's responsible for stopping Goldie's plan."

Bowing his head slightly, Captain America replied, "Thank you, sirs." Heaving a deep breath, the living legend went on to say, "If there is nothing else, then, I and my friends wish to be excused. There's still one more piece of business that we need to attend to."

"Finding your Mari," Devon intuited, to which Captain America nodded. "Of course. But keep in touch; we may need to contact you for additional information."

"Of course," Captain America replied, bringing up his Avengers ID Card once more. "I understand that all Foundation-operated buildings are fitted with their own AI systems. I'll have JARVIS relay my ID Card code to it, if you'll tell me the name."

"KAT-1, Captain," Pete reported. "She's a bit of a nitpick, but she makes an excellent secretary."

Nodding, Captain America set about relaying the pertinent information between the two AIs. "Alright, then. Thunderstrike, Hawkeye, let's get moving," he declared with a voice of authority. "Chicago's a big city, and we need to find Mari before anyone else does."

"Aw, c'mon, old man!" Hawkeye promptly complained. "We've already cleared things up with the Foundation! Why the big rush?! The little nutball can take care of herself!"

"Mari's still wearing a suppressor collar, Clint. And she's recently been through a heavy battle, so it's unlikely she's ready for another fight," Captain America reminded his teammate. "More to the point, she's still technically on probation. And even with the Foundation working to head off any potential problems, I'd like to make sure that she doesn't get in any trouble. And the best way of doing that -"

"Is to find her before the police or any other heroes do," Thundestrike broke in with a determined look.

As both Thunderstrike and Captain America turned their gazes towards him, Hawkeye groaned in defeat. "Okay, fine. Whatever," he irritably muttered. "It's not like I actually _need _dinner. Or sleep. Or -"

"Hold on. Maybe we can help you on that count, and finding your friend," Misato broke in, drawing everybody's gaze. "As Captain America said, Chicago's a big city. And given her situation, it's likely that your Mari doesn't _want _to be found right now."

"And there is also the possibility that she is no longer within Chicago," Vision tossed in. "She would have required transportation to get here in time to stop Goldie's plan. As such, she could already be in some other city."

Wincing at this, Thunderstrike hesitantly admitted, "She has a point. Mari took the _Crimson Flare_ from the _American Dream;_ she could be miles away from here by now."

"The Champions and Stingray Industries have plenty of resources, including access to anti-stealth tracking satellites. And if I make a few calls, I can get several more Champions and even SHIELD helping us out," Misato informed them. "That should improve our chances of finding your friend quickly."

"And if the _dummkopf_ in the ugly purple mask is wondering, we can even order takeout while we're looking," Captain Marvel Asuka declared.

"Hey, that's great! I -!" Hawkeye started, all smiles, before he registered on the more derogatory elements of Asuka's words. "Wait a second...what'd you say about my mask?!"

"Clint, stand down," Captain America intoned, holding his hand out to his friend. Pausing just long enough to make sure that he wasn't about to open his mouth again, the living legend looked over at Misato. "Very well then, Commander Saotome, we'll be glad to have your help."

Nodding, Misato glanced over at the Foundation heads. "We better get moving, then. If there's any more trouble, sirs, just let us know."

Smiling, Devon opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off when an electronic voice was heard. "Excuse me, Mr. Miles?" came the female voice. "The governor of Michigan is on the line. He wishes to speak with you and Mr. Thornton."

"The governor of...?" Devon got out, sounding somewhat surprised. "Well, this is certainly turning into an eventful night."

"Yes, and it's getting more eventful by the second," Pete muttered with a roll of his eyes. "Uh, Commander Saotome, Captain America, if you'll excuse us..."

"Of course. We have our own business to attend to," Captain America nodded as he started towards the door.

"Be sure to give the governor my regards!" Misato said, giving the Foundation heads a pleasant smile as the metahumans filtered out of the office.

"I'll be sure to do that, my dear," Devon nodded.

* * *

As the last of the heroes departed their office, Pete let out a low sigh. "Well, this has been a long night."

"And it's bound to get even longer, very soon," Devon intoned. "KAT, please put the governor through."

"Right away, Mr. Miles," KAT returned. An instant later, a holographic display capturing the governor's image appeared before the Foundation's heads.

"Devon Miles, Peter Thornton," the governor intoned, surveying the two of them.

"Optimus Prime! Always a pleasure to see you!" Devon smiled warmly as he studied the Autobot that had come to be so beloved by the people of Michigan, and had worked so hard in rebuilding the state after the chaos that had followed the Vanishing. "Tell me, how goes the upgrade of the RoboCops? Still coming along smoothly?"

"Very. In fact, the project is nearly complete," Optimus Prime confirmed with a subdued note of pride. "Pretender technology has proven to be a great blessing for all of the cyborgs brought into being via the various RoboCop programs, allowing them to reclaim aspects of their human existences. I understand that they are planning a mass celebration as soon as the upgrade process is complete."

"Can't say I blame them," Pete noted, knowing full well how poorly each variant of OCP had treated all of the RoboCops before they had appeared in Coreline, and how badly they had taken the loss of so much of their human lives and bodies. "Still, I have to admit to being a bit surprised to hear from you, given that you're not one for casual calls." The portly man narrowed his eyes somewhat before adding, "And given the timing of this..."

"Peter..." Devon frowned, giving his friend a scolding look.

"No, that is quite alright, Devon," Optimus assured him. "As Peter already suspects, I have heard word of what happened in Chicago with the Golden Four and Joker R gang...as well as what _almost _happened."

Wincing as he was reminded of just how quickly word could spread in this era of the internet, Devon sighed. "I suppose it would get out, sooner or later. But I _was _hoping to have a little more time to calm things down before the press got wind of this."

"I did not learn of this situation through the media; I learned of what happened through my own resources," Optimus Prime informed them. "Given the situation in Michigan and the surrounding states, I find it prudent to monitor all activities being undertaken by various metahuman groups, mega corporations, and other such organizations."

_Can't say I blame him for that,_ Devon thought, knowing full well how hard he and his compatriots had worked to keep their ears to the ground, on the alert for trouble, both before and after his arrival in Coreline. _And considering that Optimus has to juggle Sumdac Systems, OCP, and all of the other mega corporations, not to mention the mecha manufacturers, the city Transformers, and all of the rest of it...!_

Shuddering at the thought of having to deal with such an outlandish situation and once more deciding he knew precisely why Optimus Prime's election to governor of Michigan had prompted its citizens to remove the limit on the number of terms a person could serve as governor, Devon frowned and replied, "Still, you better tell us precisely what you've heard. Because I think it would be foolish of us to assume that you are the only one to have gotten wind of it."

"Agreed," Optimus solemnly agreed, and then he gave a terse summary of the information he had learned. And to Devon's dismay, it was frighteningly complete, with only the piece of information the Autobot lacked being the name and nature of the person responsible for defeating the guilty parties. "I'm glad to hear that their plans were thwarted. However, I am experienced enough with the way of politics and how people perceive such threats to know that the damage caused by such efforts extends beyond the initial threat, whether or not it was successful. And I so I wish to ask if the people of Chicago require any assistance."

Quirking the corner of his lip into a tiny smile, Devon thought, _All of the problems he already has to deal with, and he still doesn't hesitate to help others. No doubt KITT would point this out as being further proof of the fallibility of humanity._

"We appreciate the offer, Optimus. However, for the moment, we seem to have the situation in hand," Pete replied. "Still, if you wish, we could keep you up to date on -"

"Ah, hold on moment, Peter," Devon broke in, holding up his hand to his friend as an idea came to him. "Actually, Optimus, if you do not object...there _is _something we could use some assistance with."

"What is it?" Optimus wondered, his electric blue eyes focusing with concern.

"It pertains to the person responsible for stopping this horrible tragedy before it could begin," Devon began, his idea taking on greater shape and definition even as he explained the situation...

* * *

A short while after Thunderstrike and the others left the Foundation Headquarters, they were later flying through the air within the Champions Quinjet. They had just enjoyed a meal of some decent takeout food, with this meal being the finishing blow for Mana. Less than a minute after she had finished her last bite, Iron Maiden let out a deep yawn, slumped back in her chair, and was soon dead to the world.

_I know how _that _feels,_ Thunderstrike thought even as Captain America gently placed a blanket upon Mana's armored form. _Usually, a good meal is all it takes to put me to bed as well. _But as the young thunderer glanced down at the remnants of her own meal, she frowned in worry. _But I don't see how I could ever sleep now. Not until we find Mari..._

Think warm thoughts of the girl she had once hated passionately, a girl who had since become one of the few anchors to sanity she had been able to hold onto after the Vanishing, Thunderstrike watched as Steve asked Misato, "How are things going, ma'am?"

"Slowly," Misato promptly admitted. "Captain Marvel and Airstrike are already searching the area, but a lot of the Champions are either on leave for the Fourth or are busy with some other crisis. It's going to take a while before we can get a sizeable force out here." Then she turned towards the Avenger and added, "But you don't have to worry. Yui's already tapping into SHIELD surveillance feeds, security cameras, you name it. We'll have eyes all over the state, the whole _country_ if we have to! We'll _find_ her."

"It might not be that easy," Steve informed the Champions' Commander. "I trained Mari on how to avoid detection systems like that, and how to evade capture. We won't find her with electronic observation alone, not if she doesn't _want _to be found."

Frowning somewhat at this, Misato looked hard at Steve. "You know, I've been wondering this for a little while, but...how did you meet Mari in the first place?" the gamma mutant inquired. "Canons and non-canons don't usually mingle, and especially canons and amalgams! So how'd you...?"

A beat passed before Steve nodded his understanding. "I suppose that's a fair question," he admitted. "It started almost six months ago. Mari and Thunderstrike had been spending some time, touring various hot zones. Places like Nerima, Gotham City, Detroit, and were on their way to New York."

"Why were they doing _that?!"_ Misato demanded, glancing over at Thunderstrike.

"It was Mari's idea. She has the ability to analyze a person's physical skills and replicate them, just by seeing them once," Thunderstrike explained. "After we arrived here, she decided we needed to be able to improve our skills and abilities if we were going to make it in this world. And so, after we settled and established a place to live, she decided...and I agreed...that we should broaden our capabilities."

Giving Thunderstrike a look, Misato frowned and asked, "I guess I can see how that makes sense. But...even with a power like that, Mari wouldn't get very far, just by watching people."

"We were aware of that," Thunderstrike admitted. "Fortunately, we were able to do more than that. We trained, developed our strengths, and even met with other people who had come to this world, and we shared our skills and knowledge. We even encountered a Ryoga Hibiki alternate who was willing to share his own knowledge and skills, and gave us training in the arts he knew."

"Ryoga Hi- Wait a second!" Misato gaped in clear realization. "You mean you two went through the _Bakusai Tenketsu training?!"_

"You're familiar with that technique?" Steve inquired, giving Misato a look.

"Familiar with it?! I _went through it! _My husband trained me on that!" Misato declared with a shudder. "And while I can't deny that I liked the results...that's something I _never _want to go through _again!"_

"Agreed. Being smashed with a boulder isn't an enjoyable experience," Steve admitted. As Misato's eyes bulged in shock at this, the Super Soldier admitted, "I trained Mari in things I had learned, and she helped me with my training in return."

As Misato continued to stare in astonishment at Steve, Thunderstrike cleared her throat. "Excuse me, but...if I may continue...?" As both Captain and Commander again looked at her, they nodded. "As I was explaining, we had just spent some time Gotham City so that Mari could observe the techniques employed by the various Bats, and were heading towards New York in the _American Dream _when we picked up an alert. Several high-powered canons and amalgams were engaged in a free-for-all fight against each other; canonical versions of the Wrecking Crew, the Juggernaut, the Absorbing Man, among others, who were fighting amalgams such as a Juggernaut Asuka, an Abomination Naru, a Deadpool Mari, and -"

"Wait a second," Misato broke in, holding out her hand to the Thunderer. "Did you just say...a _Deadpool Mari?"_

"That is correct," Thunderstrike confirmed with a nod.

Her eyes rounding with astonished horror, Misato looked at the young thunderer. "You mean to tell me that, somewhere out there, there is an amalgam of Mari Illustrious Makinami, a girl who usually has questionable stability at best - I said _usually!"_ she interrupted herself, noting Steve about to protest. "An amalgam of Mari...and _Deadpool, _the absolute most _batshit insane person of all time?!"_

Realizing where this was going, Thunderstrike hesitated before replying, "Umm...yes."

Letting out a miserable groan, Misato shook her head miserably. "Thank you _so_ much for putting _that _in my mind..."

Wincing with understanding, Thunderstrike was forced to admit, "She _was _quite...extreme." Heaving a deep sigh, the thunderer continued. "As I was saying, there was a massive battle going on between the two groups. I do not know the cause; all I know is that they were causing massive amounts of destruction, and many innocents were in danger. Even worse, there was no sign of any other heroes at the time. So when we saw this, Mari and I decided to intervene."

"What they didn't know was that Avengers Infinity had already been alerted, and my team had been dispatched to deal with the rampant villains," Steve interjected. "Iron Man, Spider-Man, and She-Hulk had just picked me up after my training with Goku, and were bringing me back home when we got the alert, so we diverted to rendezvous with the rest of the team and deal with the situation."

"So that's how you all met," Misato gathered, nodding her understanding. "So what happened then?"

"What else happens when good guys and bad guys bump into each other?" Hawkeye demanded. "A big mess turned into an even _bigger _mess!"

"True," Captain America admitted. "Thunderstrike and Mari had already engaged the groups of villains, who decided to put aside their differences long enough to deal with them, and were leading them to a less populated area."

"And that's when we showed up to clean up their mess," Hawkeye snarked, glancing over at Thunderstrike, who glowered at him. "And then Cap decides to show off some of his new tricks and goes swooping down on Absorbing Man from above! Then he powers up his shield with some kind of crazy chi-trick, sliced Absorbing Man to pieces, and then blasted the pieces with a Kamehameha!"

Nodding at this memory, Thunderstrike admitted, "The villains were most certainly surprised, and impressed, as was Mari. As soon as she saw Steve in action, her mouth fell open...and she was struck silent by his feats."

"And it sure says a lot when a _Mari_ is at a loss for words," Hawkeye chimed in.

"When she recovered, Mari took note of her counterpart fleeing the battlefield, and decided to pursue," Thunderstrike continued despite the interruption. "Though...I suspect that part of the reason for her decision was to distance herself from Steve."

"Can't say I'm surprised," Misato noted. "Some canons don't take kindly to amalgams of themselves."

"Aye, and Mari has always taken the mantle she bears very seriously," Thunderstrike nodded. "I myself have to admit to have been anxious when I was properly introduced to Thor. For although we are very different people, I was concerned that he would resent one wielding his power."

"And now, you two get along quite well," Captain America noted with a tiny smile. "Unfortunately, while we were busy securing the rest of the villains, our Mari and the Deadpool Mari were still fighting. And during the course of their battle, the Deadpool Mari led the battle to a series of buildings that were being demolished. There she found a shipping vehicle just arriving, loaded with explosives."

"Uh-oh!" Misato broke in with a grimace. "A Deadpool and explosives?! _Bad mix!"_

"It certainly was in this case," Steve confirmed with a nod. "Deadpool Mari took off in the truck, and started onto the freeway...driving in the wrong direction." Misato groaned in dismay at this image. "Our Mari pursued, and with some effort, was able to eventually overtake Deadpool. But not before she reached a massive new shopping complex."

"Oh, no...!" Misato groaned, bringing her hand to her forehead. "Do I even need to guess what happened next?!"

"Not really, but we'll tell you anyway," Hawkeye declared with a smirk. "Our little nutjob broke into the van and ripped off the other Mari's head, figuring that would keep her down for a while. But while she was trying to get the van away from the bright, shiny, and _really expensive _mega mall...she found out the hard way that _this _Deadpool could control her body, even when her head wasn't attached to it!"

"Deadpool Mari triggered the explosives before our Mari could get clear of the shopping complex," Steve grimly explained. "Between her battle suit and the Bakusai Tenketsu training, our Mari was unhurt. As for the Deadpool Mari...it took us a few days to track down every piece of her and put them back together."

"Unfortunately, that still left the little matter of the blown up mega mall," Hawkeye noted. "Three guesses who they pinned the blame on for _that _one."

"I don't even need one," Misato grumbled sourly. "Asuka told me about how a J Jonah Jameson threw the book at her."

Nodding, Steve elaborated by saying, "Jameson condemned Mari, saying that she had been in league with the other Mari and the rest of the villains, despite not having any evidence proving it. He had her placed on a six-month probation period, had her fitted with the suppressor collar and placed restraining bolts on her battle suit, locking down much of its higher functions. Then he arranged for a variant of Naru Narusegawa to be made her probation officer."

"Yeah, and he also declared that he wished that he could throw her in jail and take away all her toys," Hawkeye tossed in. "And that if Naru caught her screwing up, he _would!"_

"And...that's how you got to know her, huh?" Misato inquired.

"That's right. What Jameson did was wrong, pure and simple. He was condemning Mari for no other reason than that he could, to satisfy his hatred for all costumed heroes," Captain America declared. "And while I couldn't do anything to reverse his judgment, I decided that I could at least help Mari."

"Okay. So you decided to help train her," Misato gathered.

"That's right. I caught some of her moves before we reached the site of the battle, and I was able to see that Mari already had some good moves of her own," Steve explained. "But I could tell that some of them were unrefined. Also, Mari admitted to me that she was never able to figure out how to throw her shield properly. So I decided to help her. Give her the training she needed."

"And they all happily lived ever after. Until tonight, of course," Hawkeye declared in a snide manner.

"You two sound pretty close," Misato noted with a tiny smile. "She even calls you Uncle."

"Yes. Yes, we are," Captain America noted. "I guess...it's not surprising, in a way. Mari lost her father and most of her loved ones in the Vanishing, and me...well, I never had any family of my own, but...in a strange way, she...reminds me of someone I once knew. A long time ago." Pausing to heave a deep sigh, the Super Soldier intoned, "We may not be related biologically, but as far as I'm concerned...she _is _family. And I'm not going to stop until I find her, and bring her back home."

Nodding to this, Misato looked like she was about to say something more when a familiar beeping was heard. "Commander," Yui began, "we're getting a signal from the Foundation. It's Devon Miles."

"Devon?" Misato repeated with a slight frown. "Alright, put him through." A beat passed before the Foundation head's image appeared before her. "Hello, Devon. Something up?"

"Oh, my!" the older man chuckled. "I must say, this _does _bring back memories!" Devon issued a few more titters before sobering. "Uh, yes, something _is _up. I've been in contact with a good friend and associate of the Foundation, and not only do we believe we have a way of rectifying any damage to our Mari's reputation, but it looks like we have a lead on where she might be!"

"Wha-?! How did -?!" Misato sputtered out in obvious shock, not that Thunderstrike could blame her.

As the purple-haired woman opened and closed her mouth repeated, Captain America asked, "What kind of lead, Devon?"

"Sensory readings on an atmospheric disturbance with a faint ionic wake. Extremely hard to detect, unless you happen to know what you're looking for," Devon reported. "The ionic pattern is comparable to the energy signature of an arc reactor."

"The _Crimson Flare,_" Thunderstrike breathed in realization. "It's powered by an arc reactor."

"So are quite a few other things in this crazy world," Misato pointed out. "That particular genie's long since been out of the bottle."

"I agree that crude imitations of Stark's arc reactor are fairly commonplace, Commander Saotome," Devon promptly concurred, "but they all employ substances such as palladium or other elements which are not only unstable, but leave a highly distinct energy signature. They're essentially worthless in small stealth vehicles such as this. This could only have been a _true _arc reactor, such as the ones registered as being in use in the _American Dream _and its support vehicles." Smiling in a bit of triumph, the older man went on to add, "Also, my associate was able to detect _two _trails left by this particular craft. One leading to Chicago, having come from Mari and Thunderstrike's place of residence, and a second one...which leads to Washington, D.C."

"Washington?" Captain America frowned perplexedly even as Thunderstrike's eyes went wide with surprise. "But...why would Mari go _there?"_

"I know," Thunderstrike declared, rising to her feet. As all eyes fell upon her, she explained, "Shortly after we were given our new home, we were scanning the internet, trying to find out as much about Coreline as we could, when Mari found out about the Smithsonian Complex in Washington, D.C.. Specifically, the _Captain America_ museum there!"

"But why would she decide to go _there,_ especially right _now?"_ Misato wondered.

"I don't know why, but it's the only thing that makes sense!" Thunderstrike insisted. "When we first went there, Mari spent almost the _entire day there! _All she wanted to do was look at the various exhibits, look at the recordings, _all of it!_ If she really has gone to Washington, then she _has _to have gone _there!"_

As the rest of the people there looked about at each other, Captain America frowned, his expression hardening. "There's only one way to know for sure," he finally declared. "Thank you for the information, Mr. Miles. We'll investigate. And please, thank your associate on our behalf."

"Certainly, Captain," Devon nodded pleasantly. "Best of luck to you all."

With that, Devon's image disappeared, leaving Captain America to do what he did best. "Thunderstrike, open a portal. We're going to Washington." Then he seemed to catch himself, looking almost embarrassed as he looked over at Misato. "That is...with your permission, Commander."

"That's quite alright, Captain," Misato assured him. "And consider permission granted. Next stop; Washington D.C.!"

* * *

Author's Note: Well, as per usual with me, a chapter just kept getting longer and longer. So this story will take longer to wrap up then I had intended. Still, I hope that you will all read and review! And maybe check out my other stories while you're at it.


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